Those lost can be Found
by Siobhan Flynn
Summary: Recounting my times at Hogwarts I come to the realization that blood does not make who you are, terrible deeds do not define a population. We are what we decide we are, not the other way around. Hogwarts changed my life in too many ways to count, but I learned one very big lesson: Those lost can be found I just have to look in the right place
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: An introduction of sorts

All this talk about the boy who lived, the boy who saved us all, the boy who lived again, the impossible boy, the hero, the triwizard champion, Gryffindor quidditch captain, and the boy who changed everything. I am of course speaking of none other than Harry Potter. I don't want to sound bitter but, is he really this golden boy? Yes he did do that whole Voldemort thing, but he wasn't alone he was never alone he had his two best friends and the entire school of Hogwarts behind his back. Typical Gryffindor, I have yet to meet one that I can stand. Attention seekers all of them since Harry Potter. They all want to be famous, think the rules don't apply for them, and always starting fights with the noble Slytherin House.

I might be getting ahead of myself but, I feel it's my duty to tell it how it is, this is after all a writing assignment, I've applied to be an Auror, yes I know I had such a promising Quidditch career and all. I was hoping I could swing being able to play during the season and work crazy hours to make up the lost time. Or I could work part time during the season, anyways I have to get my qualifications first then worry about the logistics.

The auror training program accepted me hands down, I had very acceptable O.W.L.s and even more acceptable N.E.W.T.s. I applied with several letters or recommendations and the Personal essay that I wrote (the topic was the seamless integration of wizards? in the muggle world and the downfalls and how both sides would react). I chose that topic because I grew up with one foot in the wizarding community and one foot deep in the muggle world. If you must know my parents died in the great second downfall of The Lord Voldemort (I still think he's far too pretentious trying to live up to The Slytherin mantra).

I tend to ramble a little bit, that's part of this assignment. This is a memory exercise, an auror is only as good as their memory. So being able to recall memories without magic is a skill I was assured I would need and use every day. Ever since the second rise and fall of the Dark Lord (again there he goes making the Slytherins look bad) the expectations of the aurors sky rocketed, the training became more intensive (apparently). This also made it harder to get in, after Potter everyone wanted to hunt down and apprehend (not kill) dark wizards.

I chose to reaccount my time at Hogwarts and such events surrounding that that are relevant such as getting my first ever letter (by owl! how wizard is that). And so on. We were chosen to choose a time in our life that changed them forever. Well going to Hogwarts changed mine. And there was no simple moment that I can point at and say 'this right here changed everything for me in so many ways I can even'. No Hogwarts changed my life in little ways all the time. These by themselves were small changes that seem meaningless and lacking all significance to properly do this assignment. Honestly I think it was a trick question like 'which goblin was critical in the goblin rebellions so much so that without whom the rebellions would have never happened'.

Hogwarts (School of Witchcraft and Wizardry) is one of the best schools to learn magic. It's located somewhere in Great Britain and of course it's a castle. There are countless charms to protect it from muggles, infiltration, siege, and naturally destruction. Don't get me wrong Hogwarts is not the only school in which wizards and witches can learn magic, there are plenty of smaller schools, institutes and academies. There are two other schools on par with Hogwarts (One's in France I think the south, and the other Russia, very much North).

Hogwarts was also the site in which voldemort fell, again. Naturally there are new Hogwarts ghosts, some new awards, new defense measures, renovations, and a new wing. There is even a site seeing tour to show the great points of the battle (it was 'shut down' early on, it is after all a school not a museum we are there to learn not cater to those too stupid to read books or a map, headmistresses words not mine). There have been other changes made as well, professors having different jobs, new professors, new field trips and even something that causes major revisions to ' _Hogwarts a History_ '.

Now I think it's time that introduce myself, I am an Irish witch. One of my life goals is to play for the national quidditch team and win Ireland the Quidditch World Cup. I am a Leo, ironic considering I am not a Gryffindor. I was born a metamorphmagus thats right just like the coolest witch ever Nymphodora Tonks. I met her once and that was it I wanted to be her! *cough cough* My mum was a pureblood witch from a really old family, think noble house of Black and Malfoy Crabbe Goyle, the snob families who look down on the Weasleys and muggle love and the families whom hate blood mixing. Oh don't forget Lestrange. Rabastan Lestrange was my grandfather, my mother married a muggle born man and we took his surname. My name is very much Irish, Siobhan Flynn. At least no one can say I am from a long line of Deatheaters, until they find out about my mothers maiden name.

That seems like any place than any to take a break, I've a potion to finish brewing any how (it's a minor antidote to snake poison).


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Post by Owl

Life after the Dark Lord came back wasn't good for anyone, even a witch who married and lived with her Irish muggle born husband. During his rise to power, I don't remember much I was just a baby (a toddler). Death eaters backed by their dear old Lord Voldy had nothing to fear from the ministry of magic so off they went having Death eater fun. Looking for the Potter boy hunting down mudbloods and anyone less than half blood, terrorizing the humans and just being bratty. Seriously levitating muggles how cliché? They are lame, using animation spells to animate muggle clothes to rip off and attack (and kill) the wearer? Just weak. Forcing socks down people's esophagus until they choke and slowly die, all the while the socks are making their way out of the digestive tract (that's right out down the mouth out the anus). At least that's creative.

There were raids all over Britain, Scotland and Ireland. No one was safe. First they went after mum, Belletrix hunted her niece herself. Dad took me to his very muggle family and hat wasn't so bad. He dropped me off and went on the run; the Death Eaters had the entire Ministry to play with. He knew it was only a matter of time until he too was subject to the cruciatus curse. I was safe being far too young to be in the system and as dad wrote in his letter the dark lord should have fallen by then and if not he doubts the dark lord will maintain the government (he may have sugar coated it about how bad it was now I can see that if the dark lord didn't fall, the only saving grace I have is my pureblood mother).

Dark days I was born in and grew up in. Dad took me to his parents that's right the people who dealt with a wizard son, smart choice my dad made. He also told them what was going on, so, even the muggles knew it was a very bad time. There were a lot of rules that I lived by, don't go out alone, no outside at sunset, no going to a friends house without my grandparents meeting the parents first, no candy at all, sleepovers were only allowed at my place, no big birthday parties, and no talking about the weird things that we had. Oh yes, my grandparents kept my fathers school trunk, and they had his subscription of the daily prophet, and a bag of wizarding money.

As much as I wish I could say I was a brat who hated the rules, I was until the first muggle house got attacked by Death Eaters. I'll never forget it, the house was three streets away from ours. There was the Death Eater symbol over the roof, it was a dark green smoke and the snake slithered and squirmed out of the skull. I never saw the inside of the house, but the pictures were all over the post, body parts were everywhere, blood painted the walls, and there was a message painted on the outside of the house, _'Witnesses, snitches, and mudbloods beware, the dark lord has risen_ '. The windows of the house were broken, wooden panels falling off the side of the house. It later became a haunted house.

Muggle School was fun; it was the first time I actually got to have friends, well sort of. As long as they followed my grandparents' rules and so did I. I was very clever for my age in Muggle School and I loved learning about science. I excelled at all of my muggle lessons except for history. My grandparents never hid the truth from me about my parents how they died and who I am. So I was very curious as to why no one knew about the dark lord and what happened. My grandparents had to sit me down and explain that most non-magical people didn't know anything about the magical world.

There I was, a kid with a secret, I knew that magic was real a truth no one else got to know. I was a magical child, with magical parents and one day I will learn magic. While everyone had to grow up and admit mermaids, unicorns, vampires, werewolves, trolls, pixies, fairies, giants and goblins were just make believe. I felt like I was in a secret club.

I remember the first day something magic happened to me. It happened when I was eight years old and at the end of year three in muggle school. There was this really mean girl, she told me I wasn't pretty with my mud brown hair, mud brown eyes and buck teeth. She then told me pretty girls always have blonde hair, blue eyes and even teeth. I was shaking with fury even when my grandmother picked me up after school. I was so mad I kicked the neighbour's cat.

My grandmother asked me what was bothering me at dinner but I didn't feel talking about it. Who wants to talk about their flaws as reasons for not being pretty. So instead I stomped to my room and slammed the door. I fumed all night and thought all about what she said, I had to be blonde with blue eyes and even teeth to be pretty. And for some reason I really needed to prove to her that I was pretty. I knew the biggest secret ever so what does she know.

That morning I woke up with the fullest softest smoothest and sleekest blonde hair. I had the most bluest, softest and sparkly baby blue eyes. And my teeth were perfectly even. I was even prettier than that stupid Emma Jorgins

I can downstairs feeling like I was walking on sunshine, and like I was glowing, I couldn't wait to see Emma's face. That will teach her for saying I wasn't pretty. My grandparents weren't so thrilled. My grandfather dropped his breakfast tea all over the table and my grandmother stared and the bacon burned. 

'Soibhan, sweety, how about you stay home today.' My grandmother said sitting me down at the table while my grandfather cleaned up his tea. She set toast in front of me and threw out the bacon. 

'But I can't! Emma Jorgins said I wasn't pretty! And now I am! I have to show her!' I pleaded my grandmother. I just had to rub it in her stupid face. I was magic and she wasn't and I can change how I look. I would like to see her try to Change her hair colour, and eye colour and how even her teeth are all at once. 

'Oh darling, she is a stupid brat who can't tell the difference between her face and her backside.' My grandmother told me rubbing my arm. I nodded she was right; she was the stupidest person in class. She failed most of the tests and quizzes we had.

'She is just jealous that you got top grades this year popkin, don't let her poison you, you are pretty inside and out.' My grandfather said choosing his words very carefully. I think he did that because I somehow had turned myself into a blonde barbie doll. 

'Then why can't I go to school?' I asked completely unconcerned that non-magical children don't just change their hair colour, and eye colour. Apparently the thought that I could cause school wide panic, and end in social services questioning my grandparents about how my hair and eye colour changed so drastically over night. 

'Because, darling today is a very special day and I think it's time that you meet someone.' My grandmother had told me and just like that, all of my thoughts of going to school and rubbing my overnight beauty in Emma's nose faded. This had to mean I was going to meet dare I speak it, meet a witch or wizard! I have waited my entire life for this moment (or at least that's what it felt like to my nine year old brain).

'Really? So I can meet a real live wizard or witch?' I asked trying my hardest to contain my glee. I don't think I did that good of a job both of my grandparents chuckled to themselves. 

'That's right, popkin. Now run upstairs and get dressed.' Grandmother said kissing me on the head. I finished eating my breakfast and ran back upstairs. I was excited, I didn't have to go to class, I get to meet someone magical, and I look ten times as pretty as that stupid Emma Jorgins ever did. Today was the best day of my life, literally it beats the day Grandmother got me a kitty (I names him Tiger, he was a small orange cat with swirls or cream and white) and this beats all Christmases and Birthdays. 

I ran upstairs and into my room and started to look for the perfect outfit for meeting someone like me: magical. I suppose it never dawned on me to inquire exactly how my very non-magical grandparents planned on contacting this magical person. Or better yet how did they know anyone magical, it wasn't as if they welcomed them over for weekly tea parties. I suppose my young mind was far to busy to worry about the exact details of this most amazing day. I had to found something to wear that would not embarrass me and look good with my new hair. 

At the end of my torture my grandfather parked the car by what looked less like the meeting place of a magical person but the meeting to a scary professor. I felt this dark deep pit in my stomach I didn't want to go in there, it was dark and old and the building was leaking much like the sign (The Leaky Cauldron). 

The inside looked much better than the outside did. The inside was warm and inviting and dare I say magical? The bottom floor was littered with wooden tables and the upstairs was lined with doors. This place was so much bigger on the inside than it looked on the outside. I was instantly impressed and excited and the biggest smile crept on my face.

Everywhere all around was a sight to see, there was someone stirring their tea without touching the spoon, their finger was swirling over it. The spoon stirred itself! Clearly they were too busy reading their book _'Fairies are they friend or foe?_ ' to be bothered in actually stirring their tea. I want to do magic like that no words or anything!

There was a witch who twitched her nose and said a little her empty cup filled all by itself! Just a twitch of her nose and maybe she muttered something under her breathe but still that is impressive. Her biscuit plate also filled itself but I don't mean to brag about her magical prowess.

'There they are.' Grandmother said pointing at two very ginger people. She pulled me away from watching someone pull out their wand and turning their rat into a goblet and a ferret ran up to sit beside them and that ferret turned into a person! Like poof one second white ferret the next second a blonde person who picked up the goblet! I almost couldn't look away from the sight.

The ginger people my grandmother pointed out waved at us and we waved back. The woman was short and plump and had the wildest red hair I had ever seen. She had grey streaks running through it but nonetheless it was red. Her smile made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside its the motherly smile. She had the same sort of smile my grandmother had, a smile that you trusted. The man beside her looked younger, and wore his ginger hair in a ponytail and had a large fang hanging from his ear. There was only one word that I could think of to describe him: cool. He looked laid back and fun and well like all cool boys look.

As grandmother and grandfather sat down several large clear mugs of what looked like ginger beer but darker were placed on coasters in front of them by a hunched over bald man. He could do with a bit of magic to fix his teeth. They were all pointed and jagged and going every which way. I sat down in the only available seat right in front of the coolest guy I had ever seen.

'I ordered us all butter beers, I brought my son, if I had brought Arthur he would go on and on about your muggle contraptions and forget all about your inquiry. Can you explain exactly what occurred?' The woman said taking a sip of her butter beer as she called it. I took a sip it tasted like pumpkin and caramel and a dash of whipped cream and spice. It was magical and delicious and amazing and I want to drink it every day.

'Thank you, well here is her school photograph. As you can see her hair and eyes have changed drastically and this occurred last night, yesterday she comes home from school is a tizzy, won't talk about it, and this morning she comes down the stairs as she is now.' Grandmother explained, grandfather nodded along drinking his butter beer politely I could tell he wasn't a fan of it. His nose did that crinkly thing it did when grandmother made meatloaf. As grandmother explained both mother and son looked my school photograph over, I had chosen to wear ocean blue dress with fish on it and the matching headband and I had decorated my shoes with fish stickers (you can't see the shoes but that was crucial to complete the look).

'My dear, what happened?' She looked at me with her comforting motherly eyes. I didn't realize until now that I was getting worried about this whole thing, clearly it as not something my grandparents had expected to happen to me, and they knew I was magical.

'Well Emma Jorgins told me in her stupid snide voice that pretty girls look like her blonde hair and blue eyes like a doll, and I had none of those.' I said last with the hem of my dress explaining it again made me feel stupid it was silly really. 'So I got home and I was still mad, I wanted to show her that I was just as pretty as she was. Everyone knows I'm soo much smarter than her. Anyways so I thought if I had prettier blonde hair than her and even sparklier blue eyes than she would have to admit I was pretty and she would just hate that.' I explained imagining face when she has to tell me I'm pretty they are after all he rules.

'At least she had a good reason.' Bill said looking very amused. I sure hope he isn't laugh it at me. I would just die (I thought I would at the time but now I know I won't die just because some guy laughs at me or doesn't approve) if he was laughing at me. Honestly today had gone from best to worst.

'Quite, most girls her age try to make the others feel bad not rue the day they say something mean.' Bill's mother sounding proud and impressed in me,. I swelled up with pride. This magical amazing woman who doesn't even know me was proud in me.

'Yes we are quite proud she has a rather unique way of approaching things, but when her father was this age, the toad swelled ten times its normal size, he shrunk his jumper, his greens turned to sweets, never did his hair change or his eyes...' Grandmother said her concern was obvious now. She was also scared and was looking to the witch for comfort. So that's hay today was all about it had done something very unusual. 

'Yes we are quite proud she has a rather unique way of approaching things, but when her father was this age, the toad swelled ten times its normal size, he shrunk his jumper, his greens turned to sweets, never did his hair change or his eyes...' Grandmother said her concern was obvious now. She was also scared and was looking to the witch for comfort. So that's what today was all about, I had done something very unusual.

'This is... Not the usual for young magic... Let me see.' The witch said pulling out a stick, it was a wand somehow at that ripe age of nine I just knew what it was. It was the instrument in which magic was done (unless you were that ferret or that wizard who was just stirring his tea using nothing at all that was pretty cool or that nose crinkling witch can't forget about her). She said some words in a language I couldn't comprehend (and I was fluent in Gaelic) and some light came from the tip of her wand and nothing happened. All that build for nothing to happen I have to say I was completely disappointed. 

'Mum I think she might be a metamorphomagus, I remember the stories Tonks had about her younger years.' Bill said looking me over with a perplexed look. I don't know what he just said but it had to be alright after all the cool Bill had said it. I don't know who or what a Tonks is but if they were like me than I guess I am just super special, since they didn't really know what to do about my still blond curly locks (some time during the car ride I had thought about having curly hair and how that was so much cuter). 

'Deary, I want you to do something.' The witch asked me on the stern yet soft mother voice that made you want to do it even if it was clean the toilet. I gave her a nod to tell her I was listening. 'Think very clearly about your natural hair and eye colour, focus on that and concentrate and returning to your natural state.' She said and at first I didn't want to. But the looks both she and Bill gave me made me do it. I couldn't let her down or disappoint him, in that moment I desperately wanted to be whatever it was he said I was.

'I think that settles it, she is a metamorphomagus, she has the rare gift of being able to change her appearance at whim, I'll look for a book to help.' The witch said breaking my concentration I looked and she had already gotten up and left the table. 

There I sat thinking about what she had just said, I had a rare gift to change my appearance whenever I wanted. I would never need to dye my hair or get a hair cut or anything ever. I could have freckles and then not have them, have cute dimples and have a very grown up look. If there was a fear that Hogwarts (the school my parents attended) wouldn't accept me, it faded. How could they not want me now? I could change everything about how I looked, all I had to do was concentrate. 

'Here we are a book for you to read through I hope it helps dear if not send us another owl and I'll see what I can find out.' The witch said handing my grandmother a rather large and heavy looking book. I didn't catch the title of this book but I saw a picture of someone with pink hair. 

With that we said our farewells and we climbed back into the car. This car ride didn't seem to be so long after all this was after I had met the wizard and the witch and I had learned I was super special. Throughout the ride home grandmother was telling that there were going to be some new rules, such as no changing my appearance before class, no changing during class or outside, no showing the neighbourhood children what I could do. I was to keep it a secret, so I could only practice indoors as long as I was back to normal before we had company over or before I left. The house. During this time I neglected to tell my grandmother I had fixed my teeth I didn't want to have to get braces after all.

Summer came and Grandmother had finished the book and told me it would do best if I did practice changing my looks, so I was given magazines of different faces and hair styles and I had to practice until I could master that feature, hair colours were the hardest and eyes. Grandmothers rules continued to be a pest throughout the entire summer, how could I practice and play in the garden all summer? It just wasn't possible. Then right after my birthday she gave me the book to read, she said it was so I could understand what it is I am.

Age 10, and I started another year in school, and the only that really changed was the fact that I could change my appearance. The worst part was not being able to tell anyone. When I came time for class photos grandmother refused to let me do anything to my hair, except give it a sleek shine to it. I wanted it to be a brilliant shade of purple but she said no. The only time she let me have my fun was for Halloween she let me have any colour of hair that I wanted and as long as I didn't go crazy I could change my face too. So I made the best of it and was a mermaid princess for Halloween and I won the costume contest.

Besides my ability to change my appearance the other small magical a stuff seemed harmless and very easy to miss. I didn't realize that one day I had magicked the stickers on my shoes to never come off even with water and I had magicked my favourite jumper to grow and extra size so Grandmother couldn't throw it out. I didn't have any rules on that magic and she said it wasn't like I could control it anyways all magical children do small little bits of magic without realizing they were doing it. I thought it was a bit unfair at the time that my face changing had rules but she said I could control it somewhat so it was only fair I that I followed the rules of the magical community.

Nothing big happened until the first of August mere days before my 11th birthday. I had gotten post by owl for the first time, and it happened before I could even finish my waffles (I don't remember what we were celebrating, whatever it was it called for banana nut waffles and sliced banana and banana flavoured whipped cream). I being nearly 11 had smothered it in syrup. I was cutting my waffle when I heard this _'SWOOSH!_ ' And this weird chirping noise. I looked up and there standing on my kitchen table in front of my waffles was a big brown owl. In its beak was a thick envelope. At first I was curious as to how on Earth an owl got into the kitchen. The kitchen window was open (we were in a hot spell and after a week we finally got some wind, I smelt a storm there was always a storm on my birthday).

I looked up at my grandparents and I don't know why but I had expected them to take there being an owl on the kitchen table about as well as they take muddy shoes on the kitchen tile (very very bad). But no there they were calm as day as if owls normally just flew in during breakfast and delivered post. When I looked at Grandmother she had the biggest smile on her face, that smile made me very suspicious, the extra fancy breakfast a few days before my birthday? And that smile added up to she knew I would get this letter today. But how could she know? No one knows exactly when the post arrives.

I reached for the letter and the owl let it go once I had a good grip on it. I looked the front over, it was addressed to me, very specifically it labeled my bedroom location perfectly. I should have been scared but that was so cool. The ink was an emerald green and written in a pen I have never seen before. The writing looked so different, it as like think was in the paper not just on it. The paper was thicker than what I had been accustomed to. The paper my grandmother buys is much thinner and doesn't have the same yellow tinge to it to make it look old. The envelope was secured closed by a blot of crimson wax, in the centre of the coat of arms was an ' _H_ '.

Carefully I pried the envelope open careful not to break the wax or rip the envelope. I pulled out a letter and read it three times before it clicked in my brain. The headmistress Minerva McGonagall had written me a letter telling me I had been accepted into Hogwarts! She said to be on the train at the Dublin train station the first of September, by 9:47 (that's when the train leaves) and that she is expecting my reply no later than August 26th. 

I got up and dug around the kitchen junk drawer and found a note pad and a pen and quickly scribbled my response

 _'Dear Headmistress McGonagall,_

 _I had received your acceptance letter and I would love to attend your school (Hogwarts) and I plan on being on the train before it departs Dublin, thank you for accepting me (although I knew you would after all I am a metamorphomagus and both my parents attended your school)._

 _Signed your newest student,_

 _Siobhan Flynn_ '

I folded up my response letter and gave it to the owl, the owl took the letter in its beak and launched itself into the air and flew out of the kitchen window without so much as dropping a feather on the table. I watched at it flew off into the horizon until I couldn't see it anymore, I wasn't sure how fast owl post is, the normal post with the post man isn't always the fastest it could take a week to send a letter from Slate to Dublin. I do hope she gets my reply on time, it's not like I sent it the day she wants it by. 

I looked back down to the envelope, I was thinking about framing it when I saw a second letter poking out, I pulled it out and read it. It was my supplies list it had quills, and a wand, parchment, a cauldron, inkpots, a brass telescope, a set of scales, robes, potion ingredients, a pointed hat and a long list of textbooks. The sheer number of books made me feel like I was very very behind in this magic business. Then the scary thought of _'What if if I was too far behind all the kids who grew up on a magical home and I got kicked out?_ '

I was too preoccupied in my panic to realize that at the bottom there was a note. It said I could bring a pet, either a cat, rat or owl (no question there which one I would want) and that first year students are not permitted to bring their own brooms (this one had me stumped so we don't have to clean? I was very okay this as I am a firm believer that cleaning is torture, but why would anyone want to bring their own broom to sweep with?).

Grandmother had taken my book list and the scarlet and golden train ticket and stuck them on the refrigerator for safe keeping. I had to admit that was probably for the best there was a very high chance I would lose both before I woke up tomorrow morning. I did protest her taking my book list, I wanted to go get everything right now and start reading my books. But my Grandmother as very firm in that we were not going to go to London today.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: My First Adventure in the Magical world

My birthday came and passed, we had a small party (me grandmother and grandfather), and then we had a very special dinner (we went to a burger house and had the biggest burgers I could imagine). After that we went to the ice cream shop (I got a waffle cone and triple scoop) we went back home and that's when we exchanged gifts. Grandfather got me a new journal book, he said it was to write in while I'm away, so o can read back and remember the memories or if I needed someone to talk to and there was no one around, and grandmother got me this neat toy, it was a virtual pet of sorts as well as a clock.

A couple days after my birthday Grandmother finally told me that we were going to go to London and to bring my school list. I decided to dress more casual in a pair of jeans and a jumper with the grinning Cheshire Cat on it (the one from Alice in Wonderland my favourite book and movies recently). I also decided that my runners would be the best option (my star shoes are too tight on my toes and whenever I put them on they grow even tighter and the stars grow bigger and brighter).

Grandmother got into the drivers seat of the car and motioned that I should sit in the front. I was shocked I never and I mean never get to sit in the front of the car. My grandparents always and I mean always go everywhere together. They both come to pick me up from school and to drop me off they both go shopping and to the post office. I sat in the seat questioningly, are my grandparents having a row? They never argue they never even shout even when they are cross. 

'Your Grandfather is fine dear, he just isn't as comfortable with the whole magical world thing as I am, I don't think he ever will be.' Grandmother said casting her eyes to my face. I guess my face told her everything she needed to know about what as going through my head. I didn't even get to grandfather being sick... Oh gosh what type of person am I? To think that my Grandfather could be sick because of what I was, I just couldn't think that right now. 

'He never really has been comfortable with it dear, ever since your father decided to get a wizards job instead of taking over your Grandfathers book store. He blamed your Mother for putting such ideas into your Fathers head you see. No matter what your Father said, your Grandfather never could accept that they were in love. She thought it was all due to her family, so she explained that she was not like her family. But that only made it worse I'm afraid.' Grandmother explained while driving down towards the ferryboat. Grandfather didn't like magic, which means there will always be a part of me that he doesn't like. And there will always be that part of me that he won't like. And I don't want to have the bookstore just like my Father. I will hurt my Grandfather just as Father did. This thought sickens me that I want to change who I am just for someone else's comfort. But that wasn't as concerning to me as this new news of my Mother. No one ever speaks of my Mother. So at age 11 my mind glossed over the gross things to the statement and just flashed to my Mother.

'What sort of family did she come from?' I asked feeling that I ought to take advantage of this rare time to talk about the one person I know the least about. She left when I was young, I couldn't have been older than five years young. There were no pictures of her anywhere, she was like someone who didn't exist

'A very bad family. They were part of the gang of followers for The Dark Lord, called Death eaters. They were the ones who hunted down your parents and... Murdered them.' My Grandmother explained in a calm voice but I could tell she was scared to tell me, even now that it has been five years since he was defeated (I was five when he came out of hiding and 6 when he was defeated). 'They were and are the Lestrange family. I assure you your mother was nothing like them.' Grandmother said softly. I nodded.

So my Mother comes from an evil family that hunted her down and killed her probably for being different from them. The first thing that ran through my head was fear if they are still out there what's stopping them from finding me? They must be nasty if they made Grandmother pray under her breathe. That must be why no one ever talks about her and why there are no pictures. No chances of her family linking her or me to my Grandparents. That way they couldn't hurt both my grandparents and I. 

'Blood doesn't decide who or what you are, you and only you can decide what you are and who you are. It's that simple.' Grandmother said looking at my face. I guess she could see where my thoughts were going if my Mothers family was evil what if she really was like them then I would have to be like them too. The only way to with me from being like them would be to never go to magic school.

I smiled at her words, of course she is right. There really is no one who could make me be anything I don't want to do. No distant relative can make me be some terrible person who hurts people but because why they are. I decide who I am, and I know I'm not a terrible person, I know I am a very good person. I am the person that makes nasty girls eat their words not make them as miserable as they made me.

On the ferry boat Grandmother decided we both need a pick me up after all today is supposed to be an adventure. We are going to get my schoolbooks and supplies and I was going to see the magical world for the first time ever. So got us Jelly babies and Fry's Turkish Delight (it's covered in chocolate its soo yummy). And she started to talk all about what she knew about the school. Such as there are four houses and each has their own mascot of sorts and their own colours. She told me my Father was in the Hufflepuff house and his animal was a badger and his colours were yellow and black.

After the ferryboat ride Grandmother drove straight to the one place I know that associates with the magical world: The Leaky Cauldron. She explained to me on the way that it was normally invisible to non-magical folk, but since she and Grandfather had a magical child they were granted the ability to see it. She said very few non-magical folk were allowed in the magical world, mostly those allowed are those that are the family of magical a children. But she said that's slowly changing all because of my Mother. My Mother she explained worked in the Ministry of Magic to aid in the better integration of the magical and non-magical folk. She fought to open the magical world to the notions of the non-magical world and open the magical world to the non magical folk

The Leaky Cauldron was filled with people, many were families with children of all ages. Most of the grown ups were wearing brightly coloured robes: bright greens and blues and purples and oranges, some wore black or grey. Some had tattered robes and all of them had pointy hats. The grown ups were all talking, ignoring the children who all looked anxious and excited to go. All I have to say is magical people wear the coolest clothes and I can't wait to wear their clothes

Grandmother had to pull me away to stop staring. She pulled me to the owner of this fine magical establishment, Tom. After they had a small talk Tom led out a door, to an alley, a dead end alley. The alley was dark and dreary and dank and smelt like old cat pee. It wasn't like there was a magical door or anything there was just a wall of red bricks. I got pulled away from the people I almost had the guts to talk to for this stinky old wet alleyway? There was rubbish everywhere and I think this has to be some sort of joke.

Tom pulled out a fancy looking stick out of his robes. The stick was dark brown and thin, the part he was holding was smooth and looked like it was formed just to his grip, the end was tapered slightly as if it were a skewer or used to poke things. He used his stick (I think it's a wand... I'm not to sure) and he taped the brick wall and the bricks sprang to life. At first they started to wiggle in place, then they started to wiggle and wobble away from the middle. Before my eyes a doorway formed. On the other side of the doorway was the most amazing thing I had ever seen.

It was an alley, with a long narrow winding street on either side were impossible tall and there seemed to be an impossible amount of shops. They loomed over the street casting long shadows. They were painted bright colours, with interesting and bizarre hues and shapes and some had paint jobs that looked like they moved. There was one building which had a roaring dragon in the paint and another had bubbling cauldrons. Some had chimneys and others didn't, but those that had the chimneys all had strange coloured smoke erupting from them. Some building also had big wide windows with all sorts of things on the other side, books, cauldrons, rats and toads, brooms, brightly coloured robes, chickens hanging upside down by their feet, and one displayed what I think as a unicorn horn. The last thing that the shops do was emit strange sounds or bubbles or smoke. All in all it as the liveliest set of shops I had ever seen. I am going to love being a witch.

Grandmother walked me through the busy crowd of young wizards all gawking at the lasting model of broom (proclaiming it is the fastest broom ever built) the Fury 5, according to one young wizard the fury series was obsolete after the Fury 2 so it's big deal that this broom beats all others. She dragged me to a big tall white building. It was ivory white. There were two great pillars on each side of the door. Above the door was a big gold sign _'Gringotts Bank'_. It never occurred to me that wizards would have their own bank. I guess that makes sense it seems absurd that they would carry around a crisp set of pounds in their robes.

The inside was just as grand as the outside promised, the roofs were high and round, the floors black marble and the walls just as white as the outside walls. In the middle of the floor was the banks logo, and in the middle of the far wall was a great wooden door. Written in the door was a poem:

 _'Enter stranger, but take heed  
Of what awaits the sin of greed.  
For those who take, but do not earn  
Must pay most dearly in their turn.  
So if you seek beneath our floor  
A treasure that was never yours  
Thief, you have been warned, beware  
Of finding more than treasure here.' _

I read the poem twice before it dawned on me, of course a wizard bank will have wizard ways to prevent wizards from breaking in. I imagine they have spells and such to protect the whatever wizards put in this bank. Some one would probably be mad to try to rob this place after all you have to get thought the big door without getting caught and someone how find what it is you want to steal, get through all of the protection spells and anti theft enchantments, and get out all at once. 

'Not planning to rob me are you?' Bill said making me look up. I saw scars on his face I didn't see then last time, I think in all the excitement of seeing wizards him being cool l being a metamorphomagus, and seeing a witch I must have missed a few things, that and I was nine not 11.

'No... I'm pretty sure there is some pretty...' I said and trailed off seeing the workers behind the bench. They weren't human. They were... I don't know short, with long fingers and long hooked noses. Some had beards and others didn't, most had really dark hair. And they all had a grudging look in their eye. 

'Goblins, and in your robbery scheme try to factor in a dragon.' He said with a wink and walked my grandmother to a counter. He stepped on the other side and they started to talk about the average costs of school things and exchange rates. Bill told her it was about 5 pounds to the galleon. A galleon he showed me was a large gold coin, and it takes 17 sickles (silver smaller coins) to make a galleon, and 29 knuts (the smallest bronze coin) to the sickle. Bill gave me a cheat sheet so to speak on the matters of wizard money

They talked and finally Bill handed grandmother a bag of coins and she gave him a small key and he pulled out a big book and started to flip through it. He was muttering under his breathe the entire time, with a focused look. 

'It seems she is in vault 714, and is sitting on a small fortune of her own, both of her parent set vaults have been merged to this one, her mother and father received amounts as gifts and from various wills...' Bill said and closed the book ' lets go check things out and get is young witch some pocket change, looks like you won't have to go second hand on anything after all.' He said with a very happy voice and walked us towards the big wooden door. 

The other side of the big door was more like a dungeon than a bank. There were several mine car like trolleys all waiting for someone to board, Bill helped us into one. He took the drivers seat as it will and away it went zooming very very fast. I saw the stalagmites dripping from the roof and the stalactites shooting up from the floor. I saw q waterfall beside us and there were several flashes of light and a roar. Bill was right about the Dragon! 

The mine car came to a sudden halt and Bill helped us climb out I was rather dizzy and some how he wasn't. Must be some magical trick you learn when you work here. Bill walked to a rock wall. There on the wall in an iron plates were the numbers ' _714_ '. He slid something back and found the tiny keyhole that fit the tiny key. There was an audible click and he swung the door open. 

'Due to the enchantments, only she can take anything out of her vault.' Bill explained and handed me a leather bag (it was emerald green I will keep this leather bag forever!) 'now the galleons are worth the most, take about equal amounts of each coin, if you run out during the school year you can write to me with an owl and I'll get more to you.' He said and stood aside. 

I looked in the vault and saw towers of towers or gold coins. Most of it was filled with gold. I found smaller stacks of the other two coins. I gathered them up and placed approximately the same amounts of each in my bag until it was full. Behind the piles I took was a selection of letters. Each was labeled with 'for Siobhan' and after a specific age, the first I was age 11. I took that too and slid it into my jeans pocket. I recognized the writing as my mothers every year I got a letter from her and I guess she moved the ones after I started magic school here. 

I left the vault with a very heavy money bag and e climbed back up into the trolley. I didn't say anything about the let it I'm fairly certain my grandmother would have expected one. After all she was the one who gave me one every year on my birthday at the end right before bed. I kept them all in a box that I hid under my bed. 

The ride back up was just was fast, but not as exciting there were no flashes of light no growls and no waterfall. I think the trolley chose to ascend a different path than the one it chose to go down. That would make the most logical sense, after all this is a magical bank with vaults and dragons. 

'Now that we have money we can go about getting your things, since Grandad and I are getting you an owl, you can foot the bill for your robes, and supplies I'll get your school books and wand and such. We can start with your robes dear as you have to get measured and while you are doing that I can pop in to get your owl, you wanted the short eared owl right love?' Grandmother asked me twice before she got my attention, I was far too busy staring at a shop window that displayed magical ingredients. There was a unicorn horn and unicorn hair, and newt eyes and porcupine quills and so on. It all looked so... Magical. 

'Uhh yes that's right Gran.' I said touched that she remembered all of my hard work researching what I called the perfect owl for post. I wanted one that was about medium size not too big and not too small (for both strength and speed). I also wanted one that would blend in to the most places so I could send post to more places without having my owl look out of place. The whole hiding the magical world from everyone idea, I thought it best to keep that going. 

According to Gran's list we started with my robes. The rob shop (Madame Malkin's robes for all occasions) had several displays of school robe. It looked like they all belonged to different schools, the one under Hogwarts are the only ones I cared about. They were black, with arms that went to the wrist and the bottom hem above the ankle, they had a clasp to be done up near the top, they also came with a good that draped down in the back. The insides of the robes were all lined with red. The clothes under the robes were what you would expect at a private school, black trousers, with a white shirt a grey v neck sweater and a tie. The tie was stripes red and gold. The sweater also had a small amount of the red and gold stripes an inch for math hem. 

Once inside it was all business, I had no time to ask Madame Malkin any questions. She stood me up on a stool and asked what school. I told her Hogwarts and she took my measurements and asked how many sets. I said three. She placed three shirts, vests, ties (they were black), and skirts neatly folded in a pile. She took even more measurements and added a cloak to the pile (it came with a silver clasp and a silver pin with the Hogwarts coat of arms embossed into it). She drapes black robes over me and had me hold my arms up while she pinned it to the right length. My arms got sore but the stern look in her eye made me not want to move them for any reason. 

At last she was done and packaged up all three sets of my robes and black pointed hat into a brown paper parcel. I handed her over the coins to pay she was very patient in my learning the coins and she helped me in the end. The good news was at the of that I had almost masters the wizard money and gran walked in with my owl. Instantly I named him Geronimo, I wish I had thought of a noble name, but he was an oddball and he still is the oddest owl I had ever met. For starters he likes to cuddle. 

Our next stop was the wand shop, this was one place I was really looking forward to. I had no idea how one goes about shopping for a wand but I hoped they came in fun colours and maybe It's like shopping for a pet its all about ability. Maybe this is when I have to pick which lines of magic I do, or maybe it's all about my height or eye colour or something weird.

The wand shop was called Ollivander's, it was a very long shop. Dusty windows and faded paint. The sign was old too. I thought it was probably a family run business, the Ollivander family I had assumed. Grandmother didn't seem to mind the creepy way the dimly light shop looms over us and walked inside. The door hit a small bell that chimed through the entire store. But when we got to the counter the shop looked empty if not closed

Grandmother sat down as an empty shop is all she had expected to find. There was a small thud and even louder 'Umph!' Before someone emerged from the back covered in dust their glasses askew and a large tear in the left sleeve of their robe. Their hair was so covered in dust I could be blonde or brown or even black and I wouldn't have been none the wiser. And the Wizards arms were filled with thin long boxes. 

'New student?' He looked at me leaning his head to the side to see me around his boxes. 'Just one second.' He said and stood on one foot trying to balance the boxes in one hand while the other reaches for his own wand, he gave it a flick and a wave and the boxes but themselves away, the dust disappeared from his hair (which was sandy blonde) and the tear in his robes repaired itself. He dusted off his hands and looked me over and a tape measure started to measure me on its own accord. 

'Now let's see, strong Flynn blood yes he was a gifted at charms and potions a curious combination and Lestrange she excelled at jinxes, counter curses and hexing objects.' The wand wizard muttered to himself and climbed up a ladder and rolled himself along row after row of thin long boxes. He carefully pulled one out and opened the box. He placed the wand in my hand and instantly a bird erupted from it and started to peck him. The bird looked almost like my dear Geronimo. 

'Nope.' He said shaking his head after he waved his wand and the bird disappeared. He took the wand back placed it gingerly back in its box and set the box aside and set out back to find yet another wand. He spent a lot longer in the back and came out with his arms filled with boxes. He had the look that this was going to take a while. I glanced back at grandmother and she had pulled out one of her books. 

We had tried several large piles of wands before the wizard ran his hands though his hair looking q little exasperated. He looked me over and muttered under his breath and stare at me intently for a minute. (This is what I now call the Harry Potter moment they happen quite often, I not being 11 and having read the books, watched the movies seen the play and even read the fanfictions… so many… slash fans, and shipping (I don't even… I just can't even what is 'shipping'?) and alternate universes.. but for now I am innocent and only 11). It as awkward and uncomfortable and his eyes lit like he had the most genius idea ever and ran to the back. There was a lot of excited statements like Never had I thought' or 'Not even Grandad sold one' and lastly 'first ever sold, and I get to sell it'. I had to muffle my giggles at his excitement. There was several thuds and when finally he came back holding a very dusty wooden box, this was not a cardboard box it as dark mahogany wood with an iron latch. Slowly he worked the latch open and pulled out a golden brown wand, there were swirls of darker brown and light brown throughout the wand. It looked almost like it was taken straight from the tree, a little smoothing things over, some slight tapering at the end. It was a magic stick.

'Acacia wood, with a Dragon heartstring core, this wand is fairly hard might lean towards the brittle side and it's a comfortable 13.5 inches long.' He told me narrowly concealing his excitement and delight. He gently placed it in my hand and just this once nothing exploded, nothing erupted out of the end, no loud noises. All the handed as that it glowed an eerie gold and he almost squealed with glee. 

'It chose you! It's settled then, I'll be right back can't just give that wand away without...' He said and ran back to his back room. I stared at grandmother and she put her book away and was standing up at hot counter pulling out the set rate of seven galleons for my wand. He ran back holding a big book and another box with the letters in gold 'wand servicing kit'. He placed them on the counter and took the wand from me and slipped it into a satin bag and back into its box and placed that too on the counter. 

'Take care of this wand, it's a rare one, the book name kit are free of charge.' He said and placed everything a bag and took grandmothers money and handed me the bag. I smiled, I have a rare wand, I have a rare wand. I have a wand to rare I got a free book and a wand service kit! But I suppose this means I'll need a book to care for my owl Geronimo (I am standing by that name, besides he has gone by the name all through my Hogwarts time and up till now I doubt I can just change it) as well. 

Our next stop was to get the usual supplies, and this I told Grandmother not to worry I would foot the bill on this one. She chuckled and agreed. This shop was wonderful it was filled with quills and ink bottles, and rolls of parchment and journal books, and candles that never burn out (for those long nights) candles whose was never spills, quick dry ink and spill proof ink bottles, spell checking quills, quick notes quills, self-writing quills, colour changing inks and so on. I bought ten different join two books (for notes notes, I reasoned ten should be enough for class notes, a book for spells and potions), I bought a roll of 500 ft of parchment that has length markers along the margin, a package of rainbow coloured quills and a package of white ones, several bottles of ordinary black ink, a bottle of colour change ink, a bottle of no spill ink, and several candles a candle that never goes out and a candle whose flame changes colour ever hour (guaranteed to burn for 12 hours a colour.) 

With my moneybag considerably lighter grandmother took me to the apothecary to pick up my potion supplies kit. The shop smelt like mint and something foul. Grandmother paid quickly and left as fast as she could she said the smell made her feel sick. After that we got my scales, dragon hide gloves and brass telescope (I wanted silver I said it would look so much nicer but she said no). Then it came time to go to the cauldron shop. There were gold ones, and iron ones, and silver, but I needed pewter so that's what I got. No fancy self-stirring cauldrons made of silver for me. 

Our final stop of the day was the book shop, the long awaited book shop. Grandmother told me if I wanted to any books on top of my schoolbooks I could pay for them. I told her that was just what I was thinking. The first books we got was my school books, which included, _Magical Draughts and Potions_ , _The Standard Book of Spells_ , _The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self Protection_ , _One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi_ , _A History of Magic_ and _A Beginners' Guide to Transfiguration_. Grandmother went to go pay for the, while I found other books for background reading.

I found a book about owl care, _How to Keep Your Magical Companion in Tip Top Shape Beak to Tail Feathers_. This book is sure to help me ensure I took the best care of Geronimo. I then sought out a book to tell me all about Hogwarts and decided on _Hogwarts, A history, revised_. This had school maps and had the revisions on maps and protection charms and policies and history of course. I then found a book called _The Rise and Fall of The Dark Lord, volume 1_ and _volume 2_ (the second of course about his second rise and fall). Beside that there was a book filled with the entire collection of the _Chronicles of Harry Potter_. I walked into the section labeled _Help for your first year at Hogwarts_ , and the first book that caught my eye was a small one, labelled First time with a _Quill No Problem, Learn How to Write Like a Pro!_ The next book was _Revisions, Essays, Spell Practice and Potion Prep? Learn How to Manage Your Schoolwork_. Clearly there is the 'Like a Pro' line of books. The last book I found was _Introduction to Quidditch and Other Wizard Conventions_. 

With my moneybag lighter, my cauldron filled with school books, and supplies and arms filled with bags Grandmother and I made our way back to e leaky cauldron and to the car. As tired as I was I just couldn't sleep in the car. It as too dark to read through any of my new schoolbooks and Grandmother told me that I could start tomorrow. We had dinner on the ferryboat (burgers and chips) and we even found some veggies to feed my owl as we both didn't have a mouse handy. The rest of the ride back I was thinking about the secret letter I had in my pocket, I had decided it was for me and that I should read it and then decide if isn't something my grandparents should see, but I can't help but think that if my mother were here this wouldn't be a problem. 

I carried everything up to my room (it took several trips), I arrange it do my owl cage is by the window and all my books on my bookshelf and parchment, journal books, quill and ink all on my desk everything else in my cauldron. I changed into my pyjamas before I turned on my lamp and crawled into bed (it was far too late so my Grandparents sent me straight to bed). I opened it and read the letter. 

_'My dearest Siobhan,_

 _There are so many things I wish I could say to you on this day, the eleventh birthday is big for the magical a world. It was the day your father and I were going to tell you all about being magic, going to school and the whole magical world. But as I'm sure you know, the Dark lord rose again, and... I don't know if you are ready for this but, I came from a family of dark wizards. They took my being different as being a family traitor. I loved your father and I loved you deeply, I had to leave you see, if my family knew about you, I fear the things they would do. But this letter is not about them it is about you and you turning eleven._

 _You are a witch just as I am, I hope you are as beautiful as I had hoped you would be. There is something I want you to know and never forget, you and only can decide who you become and heat you become, magic is not innately good or bad either is any magical family. Blood, nor colour, nor even magical talent and dictate what you become only you can decide that for you._ __

 _While you are at school, don't worry about what house you are sorted in. The sorting hat is never wrong, it can see your true self. You don't have to be good at all types of magic not everyone is good at all types, when it comes to your 5th year, don't worry about your test scores. All that matters is that your do your best, and for your 6th and 7th year take the classes that interest you, that's the only way to get through them. And most of all make friends, they don't have to be in your house to make a good friend. Friends can help you study read you new things and interesting magic. You could even visit over the summers_

 _The last piece of advice I can think of to tell you is to try new things. You never know what food you might like, what animal you might be fond of, what books you would like to read even sports unless you try. You can try all sorts of school clubs and societies and even the quidditch team. Explore the school learn its secrets for they are plenty, you have seven years at Hogwarts to grow and decide who you are and what you are. You only have Seven years to learn everything you be able to go out on your own in the magical world._ __

 _Don't worry, the headmaster Albus Dumbledore is finest wizard ever, if there was ever a wizard who can help you it would be him. If you need help and the other school professors can't help talk to him. He will see what I see in you. Even if you get into trouble he will listen to your side no judgements._ __

 _Your loving mother'_

I read the letter several times thrilled to just have something that my mother wrote. Her writing was neat and cursive and fancy. The ink she used was emerald green and she signed it even fancier. I decided then that this letter was going to come with me to school. I opened my bedside drawer to keep it safe until I had to pack and something slid out of the envelope. It was a small silver pendant on a silver chain, I held it up and the pendant was something that I saw on my mother every day. It was hers! The pendant was small and tread drop shaped and there was a pattern that I could never really make out what it was. There was a clear squiggle boarder but inside was always up for interpretation. Sometimes I saw fish other times I saw Angels, but right now I see wings bird wings. At the very top was a very small wing but the bottom was two wings a complete set. She told me it was for luck. There was a second note inside the envelope. 

_'This is my most powerful good luck charm, I found it in my room one day and it's brought me good fortune ever since, I wore when I got sorted into Ravenclaw, which was just what I wanted, I was wearing this when I met your father. Wear it always and it will bring you the same luck it gave me. Remember it's not what you want it's what you need.'_

I smiled at the note and decided it too was too precious to leave at home. I put the necklace on and looked down at my moths necklace. It was small and simple but it promised to bring me good luck, what I need not what I want. I couldn't remember a time when she wasn't wearing it, it always fell out of her shirt when she leaned down, it was always something she fiddled with, it was always there. I felt a sudden wave of sadness, she was really gone and she wasn't going to be coming back.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: The long awaited Train

If my grandparents noticed my necklace they made no comment on it, thinking on it I think they just knew that my mother would have written be a letter for my 11th birthday and left me her good luck necklace. This made me feel both slimy that I had lied but also good, because they expected it.

My last month before school was filled with last minute stops at the store to get things such as socks and shoes, cleaning out my fathers school trunk. Grandmother said he would have loved for me to use it. He had all sorts of things in his trunk that it took me a week to clean out properly. He had his school robes (yellow he was a Hufflepuff God I hope I'm not I hate yellow), his school books, some older editions of the ones I have, he wrote in the margins so I moved them into my room so I could flip through them. He had a badge, yellow and black with a big letter P in it. I don't know what it meant but it was going to be a reminder of my dad. His cauldron was old so I decided to use mine. The rest was a journal that he kept, a bag of Bertie Botts every flavoured beans. Several sweets wrappers that I didn't know. And there was all sorts of Knicks knacks and trinkets, a spinning that that looked like it lit up, a fake wand, a glass ball, a bag of black dust, several things that looked like fireworks, a book of joke spells, a photo album, a yellow scarf and and blue one. And so the list went on and on.

Some of his things I decided to take with me to school, including the pictures he had of himself and my mother, her robes were blue where his was yellow. So that's my parents a Hufflepuff and a Ravenclaw. I looked a lot like my mum, same dark hair and dark eyes, I had my dads nose though and his strong cheeks. Although I reckon my mum had strong cheeks too. Both had good jobs, he was an Auror, and she worked for the Minister.

I packed my trunk, with my cauldron my quills, journal books (grandfather got me one just like dads) and my ink bottles. I packed my robes (one set with my hat for the the train ride there we have to be in our school robes when we arrive its school rules), and all of my school books and potion supplies, scales and the things that I found in my fathers trunk that I wanted to bring. Grandmother made me pack as early as possible so I wouldn't forget anything,

I spent the rest of my time learning how to write with a quill so my homework and notes won't look like a bloody mess. I was hard to not write too hard and not have splotches and have smooth letters. To make it less dull I wrote notes from some of my books, such as Hogwarts, A History, revised. I learned almost everything everyone one else knows about Hogwarts except how the sorting actually occurs. Then I read The Rise and Fall of The Dark Lord, volume one and volume two. Everyone else in the magical world knew all about it, so I should know about it too.

We woke up extra early had a very early breakfast and packed me a lunch for on the train. I helped grandfather get my trunk and owl down to the car, and I kept my book bag with me. It was a very tense morning, I was of to school and I didn't want to say goodbye to my grandparents. I was also excited and nervous and scared and worried (what if the train crashes? Oh don't be silly it's a magic train thy don't crash they explode into a billion bits... That's worse). My stomach was tied in knots to keep the butterflies I somehow ate and don't remember eating. What if I didn't like the other kids or what if they don't like me? What if I'm labeled a freak for my metamorphism skills? Or what if I blow up part of the school and I get expelled!

The car ride was a silent one as I couldn't vocalize anything that I was feeling. I tired but the words just wouldn't come. I didn't know what I could say, I couldn't say goodbye that was so final and hurt to much. I couldn't really say what I was feeling or worried about or it would become real and I really didn't want that to happen either. I didn't want to feel ridiculous in saying the train will explode to a billion bits while I'm on it, come on if that's happened there wouldn't ever be any students at this school.

The train station wasn't a filled as I thought it would be, I guess at this time of day most people prefer to not travel by train. Grandfather found me a trolley for my trunk and owl cage. The jostling of the trolley woke Malachi up and he gave me a displeased chick and tucked his head back under his wing determined to sleep. He is still cross with me about not letting him out last night. No mattee how many times you tell your owl that you have to wake up early to catch a train clearly they are the bird version of cats.

I checked my ticket and the platform didn't exist! That's right I had to catch a train on a platform that wasn't even there! I looked around scared that this was some sick joke when I saw someome who also had an owl looking as lost as I was. That only made me feel good in the sense that I wasn't the only stupid one. Honestly what could I expect from a magic school. Did I really think it wouod be convemtional? Apparently I did.

It seemed Hogwarts thought of everything because once it seemed me and the other student were not going to figure it out someone dressed in some sort of uniform appeared. Their robes were blacker than balck and their clothes underneath looked like they were law enforcement. His top had buttons down the middle and his robes had an offical looking gold badge pinned to the front. I could see his wand in some wand in some sort of holster. This guy was even cooler thsn Bill. Bill only worked at the only wizard bank, but thid guy was like a wizard mountie or something. All in all I wanted to be him, without the pale blonde hair and eyes that said 'I've made mistakes and I have seen some scary stuff'.

"Hogwarts anyone? You magic kids run at the barrier one at a time and I'll walk your grandparents across." He said sounding both bored and tired. I guess being the guy that makes sure new students got on the train was an unstimulating job. Little did I know I had just met Draco Malfoy. This might seem huge to those who actually know the stories, me I was still reading and he was just a book character. Oh but he is so much more than a daddies boy. Great now theres spoilers that I'm about to give away... hint keep reading I'll point it out.

The other kid, stared at him just as I did, and even though at this moment I did not know his name, I will use it to lessen the confusion. Draco sighed at our cowardice or maybe he was just annoyed at his boss for making him do this. He walked through the wall and walked back out.

"There, if your nervous, or scared it will go solid and you will crash. So run and you'll get on the platform now hurry up or you will miss your train," He said add the note of urgency in his voice. I guess magic trains don't wait for all of the passangers to board before they leave. I looked at the other kid and to Draco and somewhere in that second I decided I was going to go first. I decided the chance to run through a wall to prove I belonged in the magic community was something I was not going to give the other kid.

I ran at the barrier trolley and all. Running while havinf to push a heavy trolley was no easy feat but I did it anyways. Magic, Hogwarts, trolls, goblins, and unicorns waited for me. Evil wizards good wizards it didn't matter. Okay I'm embellishing a tad I was eleven and magic school was enough to make me run at a wall. You try to be sophisticated at age eleven and tell me how you do (of course message by owl).

I ran into a wall, but the clash, clang and smash that I expected never came. My trolley hit nothing, Malachi didn't get upturned and I did not forcevly kiss the pavement. I went through the wall not in it. I ran through and somehow the wall stopped my run and turned it into a walk. I can't say exactly when I went through the barrier, because I honesty have no idea when I passed through. It was like chasing a rainbow you never know when you finally pass it the arch and promise of gold is sitting behind you.

I was standing on a train platform, the train was bright scarlette red with big black wheels and in shimmering gold paint was scrawled 'The Hogwarts Express'. There was a constant stream of white puffs of smoke errupting from the large exhust pipe at the front of the engine. I mzy know nothing about trains, or even magic trains, but this is the most spectacular train in existence. This train was majestic sitting there while the few students boarded and bade their families farewell. This train held no judgements while I said goodbye to my grandparents and the stray tear slid down my cheek.

The wizard that helped us (The Draco Malfoy who else?) helped me lift my trunk on the train and put it up in one of the overhead shelves. I sat Malachi on the seat beside me and made sure he wasn't going to fall off. I pulled out one of my books (The Chronicles of Harry Potter). I was warned this would be a long train ride and I hoped I would be able to finish it in time.

'Do you mind It seems ridiculous to sit alone. And he already put my trunk in here.' I heard a voice that pulled me from a very exciting quidditch match. It was The Quidditch World Cup and Ireland was leading 80 to zero. I looked up and saw the other kid who needed help getting on the platform, he had a bird cage in one hand and a big book bag on his shoulder. He had decided to, like me wait until we were close to school to change into our robes. His owl was like mine determined to sleep as an insult to us, the terrible people that woke it. He had the same idea I had on selecting my owl and he chose a screech owl.

'Not at all, feel free.' I said with a smile and returned to the quidditch match, was Ireland going to win? Will Bulgaria make a come back, or will they catch the golden snitch ending the game, but Ireland wins for having the most points? I just had to know the outcome, after reading my fathers book Quidditch through the Ages I was addicted to the sport. It was exciting three types of balls, four in total on the the field. Three tall gold hoops stood at each end of the field. There are seven players in total, the three Chasers toss around the quaffle, aiming to get it in one of the gold hoops. Each time the quaffle goes through a hoop the scoring team is awarded 10 points. The Keeper's job is to stop the opposing team from scoring. The two Beaters sole job is to keep the bludgers (these are balls that have a mind of their own and ehose sole life's goal is to knock players off their brooms) away from their team and hit the other team. The final player is the Seeker, they have the second most important job, catching the snitch, ending the game and winning 150 points for their team. Often but not always the team that catches the snitch wins the match.

The exciting match between Ireland and Bulgaria ended with Bulgarian Seeker Viktor Krum catching the snitch, but Ireland won the match and The Quidditch World Cup. It was thrilling to read, I wish wizards had thought to record the match on DVD so that I could watch it with my own eyes. I had to admit the end of the match wasn't as shocking to me as I would have liked, Ireland had the better Chasers, they were a triple threat. Bulgaria just couldn't keep up and their keeper just wasn't good enough.

What was my surprising than the end of the match was what happened after the match. Death eaters showed up, in dark cloaks levitating non-magical folk like it was sport. Then the dark mark appeared in the sky and the death eaters they just vanished. I couldn't remember exactly what the dark mark was, all I knew was it was his mark. I had to pull out one of my journal and find it, I may have sketched it from one of my other books.

'You too?' The boy asked me showing me his own journal with the dark mark sketched almost methodologically. He even went so far as to label the parts and title it under it. His notes were neat and orgznized and if I had meet him any other place than a magic train enroute to a magic school I would have said he would be a doctor or a lawyer.

'Yeah... My parents... left me to my grandparents, and my grandparents are non-magical folk. I'm Siobhan Flynn.' I said feeling a littke awkward and out of place. I was never good at the whole social interaction thing. To paint the picture of 11 years old me, I was the kid in the corner with my head in a book, or in class over recess trying to do an extra curricular science experiment. I was not, and I don't know how to make this any clearer, I was not one of the cool kids.

'Mine too, I'm Ryder Flannigan, so you just got to the death eater mark?' He asked gesturing to the book in my hand. I had a feelling right then that this was the start of a beautiful friendship. This one moment everything changed for me forever. We compared notes and progreses in our school books. And soon we started a research session on Hogwarts. He and I tried to peice together a crude map, we did not want to be late or lost. After that we were deep in discussion over the different Hogwarts houses, the history of the founders their ideals and formidable witches and wizards from each house. He had this theory that you are judged heavily on which house you are sorted into. He over heard a couple of people chatting while he got his robes fitted.

I don't truly remember much about that one pivotal train ride, there was a lot of talking, snacking on sweets and getting nervous about being sorted (something we hadn't figured out yet). I don't know how or when the twins or Prince joines us but they did. And they made everything even more fun. We shared childhood stories of when we first had a big magical event (despite what Prince said it was voted that my story of how I changed my appearance was the best).

The twins and I rapidly became friends, part of it was probably due to the fact that I wanted to learn sign language. One of the twins is deaf and after speech therapy and learning to read lips she still loved to sign more. It was less work and I couldn't plan her for that. It makes sense she has to work hard to read lips and string together what was said formulate a reply and speak it. They were worried that they would end up in separate houses, they spent e ery moment together. Ryder and I assured them both that if they did get separated and if we were in their house they wouldn't be alone. We promised to help her keep up in class if she needed it friends stick together. I also offered that I could chanfe my face to look like them so they won't miss each other too much.

The twins even formed a barrier so that I could change into my robes so Ryder and Prince couldn't see me (they too needed to change but who cares if people in the passing hall see them change). After the whole barrier situation I noticed that sky had turned all dark and I could see in the distance (with extra squinting) a dark shadow that I swear looked like a castle.

The train came to a slow stop and the second it stopped everyone filed into the corridor waiting to get off of the train. My group (excluding Prince the rat) are the cool kids and sat down packing away the last of our sweets into our pockets. We filled off of the train last and being all first years were herded by this giant of a man. He had a big black beard and a bushy mane of wild black hair. This was none other than Rebeus Hagrid.

He had us climb into tiny boats, he took one all to himself and four of us first years fit easily inside. Ryder, myself and the twins all opted for taking a boat none of us really wanted to share a boat with Prince... okay so the story about him, he is snide weasel, all he ever taked about was Harry bleeding Potter and how heroic and all thinks smart and amazing Gyriffindor house members were. He made me hate them and him and I begged not to be in a boat with him. Turns out no one else wanted to be with him either so he found a bunch of people that think just as he does (we aren't animals who just shun people from the pack).

We sailed across the lake and the closer we got the bigger the castle got, the more excited I got, and the more magical the castle seemed. I forgot all about how cold I was from the splash of the lake and the wind chill. I forgot all of my nerves about being sorted into Gryffindor house, or worse. I would just quit school right then and their if they ever tried to put me in that obnoxious, fullnof them selves, arrogant and self righteous house.

We carefully climbed out of the boats careful not to fall in the lake ( I almost ALMOST pushed Prince into the lake). Someone already fell in and Hagrid pullec out his pink umbrella and muttered a couple words and the kid floated up and out of the lake abd landed softly on their own two feet on the dock.

Hagrid walked us up to the castle, I could tell he was talking but I just couldn't hear him, us cool socially awkward and deathly nervous kids all hung back. We weren't scared of Hagrid we just were scared of being sorted into the wrong house or worse having our house define our entire lives. The castle loomed over us getting larger and darker and more daunting than ever before. I think I might throw up.

Inside the big entrance doors made of wood was just as I had imagined without my desire to find something to throw up in. The walls were made of stone, that looked like hand carved bricks, and in the floor stood the coat of arms in a darker stone. There were paintings and suits of armour and a big set of stairs. There was a big set of doors to the right beside this door stood four crystal containers filled with red, yellow, blue and gem stones. I really really wish there was something that I could vomit and thats all I could focus on.

We were marched in single file into this great hall, the ceiling was just like the night sky. A cloud covered the moon, the ceiling is the night sky. There were hundreds of floating candles all lit and lighting the room. On either side of us were two long tables filled with students, and in front of us was one table that stretched across the room. That must have been the teachers table. We stopped and formed a small crowd facing a stool with a hat on it.

Soon our names were called out alphabetical ordee by last name and my heart was beating so loud I could hardly hear the first name. She walked towards the stool and the stern looking woman in emerald robes lifted the ratty old hat up. The nervous girl sat down and I felt nervous for her. The hat was placed on her hat and after a couple minutes it called out 'Ravenclaw!' The first table to my left cheered (everyones robes were accented with blue). I felt a little bit of vomit crawl up my throat. A test by some hat in front of the whole school?!

Okay, so eleven year old me didn't really pay attention to what was happening, I was really to be sick all over the stern looking woman who made me scared to call her miss instead of ma'am. But present time me knows the results of the sorting ceremony. Ryder got sorted into Ravenclaw, the twins got sorted into Slytherin, and Prince was sorted into Gryffindor. I remember my sorting very clearly.

My name was called, I was happy the pronunciation was correct and terrified it wss my turn. Ryder had just been sorted into Ravenclaw and part of me wanted to be in his house but part of me didn't I don't know why call it a gut feeling. I sat on the stool and the hat was placed on my head. I heard this voice in my head that wasn't mine it was the voice of the hat.

'Interesting, a very clever mind, yes, but wit is not all there is, loyal, a drive to be good... and courage runs deep.' The hat said as if he was speculating over which trait was my best. It sounded like he wasn't sure about where I should be.

'I don't want to wear yellow or red...' I whispered to the hat it might seem shallow but I hate those two colours to define my time here at Hogwarts. If I to have to wear my robes at all times at school I might as well as like the colours. I also didn't like the values of those two houses, yes courage is great and all but it doesn't make you a hero, you can't just be brave to be a hero. Bravery is useless all on it's own. Yes loyalty is great among friends but will your loyalty get you anywhere? Nope you can't get around in life on just being brave or loyal.

'Very strong opinions, what do we think of wit?' The hat asked as if it knew my preferences weren't just about two colours. It was as if the magical hat on my head was reading my mind. This didn't bother me as much as it should have. Honestly there was a magical object that could think all on its own, and I have no idea where it houses its brain.

'Being clever is fine and all but being clever isn't everything,' I told this magical hat on my head. It made no sense as to how this hat had the credentials to know which house I belong in. Being clever is fine but I don't want to just be that clever girl, I want this time at this school to mwan something. What I do here impacts what I can do in the future. I need to be smart.

'There is that spark. I see a potential of greatness, you belong in Slytherin!' He yelled and the table farthest to the right, besides Ryder's table cheered louder than any other table cheered. Okay so maybe they weren't cheering louder but thats what it felt like. My stomach had settled and my heart stopped beating too loud.

Everything else was a blur. I sat down beside the twins and right across from Ryder. Food magically appeared on the gold plates in front of us. The food was almost ALMOST as good as my grandmothers. If Gran ever reads this my defence is ALMOST. There was a speech made something about a new teacher, school rules, and forbidden objects. Then we were sent to bed. After that everything was a blur of green and bed.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: A Week of Firsts

~Sorry school like has been kicking my ass... So here is a chapter I really am in love with this chapter though. I hope you do too~

I woke up in an emerald green four-poster bed. The pillow was magically the perfect level of fluffiness. The blankets were thick but not too thick so I was warm but not boiling, the best was the emerald green colour of the blanket. I almost forgot everything that happened, but after remembering my bed back home, was not a four poster bed and the blankets were all knit by my grandmother. Everything that had happened yesterday was not some wonderfully detailed and vivid dream. I really did ride a magic train, meet other students all aspiring to learn real magic and I really did wear a talking hat that decided I was a Slytherin. I checked my watch, I was relieved to see it was almost 6 am I didn't want to sleep through my first day of classes at Hogwarts.

I crawled out of my bed and quietly made my bed, I could just imagine my grandmother walk in and pinch my ear for not making my bed. I left the dormitory quietly not wanting to wake up my other classmates, I had only one thing on my mind: explore. The dormitory was dark and I dared not turn on any lights (are there even light switches? Nothing I have read said anything about the castle having electricity. Okay yes dinner was lit up by floating candles but for all I that was just showing off). It really could go either way. I mean there is this whole movement of magical folk learning more about non-magical living and learning how to assimilate.

Just out of my dormitory I faced a corridor lined with doors. They were numbered 1-7 and the last was labeled 'Girl's Toilets'. I came from the door labeled '1', I guess that means the dormitories were labeled by the year, I am a first year so I live in the first year dorms. The walls were black as were the doors and the writing was in a silver elegant scrawl. These doors reminded me of royalty. There were tapestries all over the walls, some of stern elegant witches in mid sneer, others were elegant wands, snakes and what I think is magic. The corridor was lit by an eerie green light that only added an air of importance to everything. This just might be a corridor, but I love this place. That talking hat was right, this is the place for me These people on the walls, and sleeping in their beds are my people. And I refuse to let them down, or tarnish the name of Slytherin house.

Down the corridor was another door, to give the girls their privacy from the boys. This door marks were the boys cannot go. It is tradition, when the school was founded the founders all believed boys to be untrustworthy. I entered the common room and it was lit up by the same green glow. The walls were adored with tapestries, paintings and display cases. To my left stood a wall with three fire places. That must be due to the common room being in the dungeon and it's bound to be colder down here. It was hard to make out but nearly directly across from the door to the girls dormitory stood a door labeled 'Boy's Dormitory' in what looked like the same silver letters that labeled the girls dormitories. The middle of the common room was filled with tables and couches, chairs, and a bulletin board stood nearly in the center. The over all green glow gave this place the look of a hang out a very exclusive and privileged secret society. I was indeed a member of that elite group. I owe one ratty old hat a thank you: I belong here.

The tapestries all depicted epic battles, battles fighting goblins, giants and battles between wizards. There were images of wizards or witches conquering some scary beast. And others looked like a duel between legendary wizards. There were newer ones that looked like the Battle for Hogwarts. I could only assume they were new compared to the other ones because the fibers looked less warn, and looked less tired. The colours were more vibrant and it felt like I was watching it happen. A bald man with no nose calling commands to his warriors all dressed in black. The students and protectors of Hogwarts were ready to face the intruders. Harry Potter was nowhere to be seen, the great and noble potter was hiding while the whole school was ready to die for him. There were quite a few students who had to fight their own family yet they did it all for him.

Besides the tapestry of the epic battle was a memorial statue, it was a beautiful and elegant silver snake with emerald eyes. Each of the snake's scales bore a name of someone lost in battle. The inscription on the bottom said this statue was a memorial of every Slytherin lost in battle, not just the Battle for Hogwarts. There were so many names; it looked like entire families were on the snake. I knew better than to look for my parents names, neither were a member of the Slytherin house. 'Those lost, can always be found.' Was written at the bottom of the snake, and I had yet to read more true words than those.

When I was able to tear my eyes from the list of those lost, I was face to face with a painting. But this was no regular painting. The inhabitant (subject could also be used but that doesn't seen accurate as the subject of the painting was living in the painting) was sleeping. They had on a sleeping cap and dressing gown and were leaning against the frame. Every once in awhile their nose would twitch or they will adjust their position trying to get comfortable. It was like I was looking through the looking glass like Alice did, and I was seeing into the world of that painting. It was sureal seeing into a whole different world, and the most crazy part was when the inhabitant woke up, they got to see this world. Would this world look like the world in there or would it look the way I see it?

The bulletin board was a round kiosk style bulletin board. There were 8 boards that could have advertisements and announcements and under those shelves that held all sorts of pamphlets. The boards were nearly full which shocked me classes haven't even officially started yet. There was a notice about a Hogsmead trip and a trip to Summerton. Those were for the third years and up. There was a notice about Quidditch tryouts; I would have preferred to know when the first game was. There was a short version of the school rules, a list of things students were expected to do to aide in the maintenance of school security and a list of contraband items. There was a notice to fifth year students to think about career paths and a bunch of pamphlets about different jobs a witch or wizard could get upon graduating Hogwarts.

I being the young and naïve 11 year old paid no attention to the question of what will become of my future. For now my mind was more on the growling stomach and the promise of breakfast. I returned to my dormitory to find my classmates waking up. The twins saw me and smiled.

'Want to come to breakfast with us?' Lotus Rashima asked me. She was the twin who had lost her hearing. On the train she had told me the story. She had actually recovered her hearing after several years and learning how to sign and such. She and her sister still sign, not only to have secret conversations but also to make people uncomfortable. Needless to say she is a very good con artist (I have learned so much from her and her sister…. I owe them so much).

'Yes I would.' I said with a smile and started to dig through my trunk for my school robes, I was still in my pajamas after all. Dressed I found a mirror and looked my hair over, it needed a brush and also looked…. Eh. Today was a bright coloured day and I needed inspiration. I looked around looked for a colour, and I found it Lavender. We just wont tell Gran that my first day of school started with me having purple.

Breakfast was everything J.K. Rowling's books (the Chronicles of Harry Potter) had promised. Food was served on gold plates, and piled high on the plates and bowls in the center of each table. Juice of most fruits (even pumpkin juice which at this point I was too scared to try it), teas (all funky names like 'Witches magic brew' all of which I had never heard of), and coffee and milk jugs were placed around the food options. It was a feast by all accounts in my eyes.

While we dined on the most lavish breakfast I had ever seen on a school day a professor walked around our table handing out timetables. So at this point I'm sure other people remember every single detail of their lives at age 11 but alas I am no such person. I don't know my timetable and I would be ashamed if that was what I held on to of all things I could remember. Besides I think it's what I did with my time at Hogwarts that's important not the schedule in which I attended whatever classes I attended.

I am assuming I attended all of my classes, who am I kidding I was 11 and it was my first day of course I attended all of my classes. And I attended them for the first week as well. My classes were harder than I had thought, who would have thought there was more to magic than a little hocus pocus, or thinking lets have pink hair today. Oh no there was theory, pronunciation, science and so many rules. In fact I have a letter I wrote about my first week of Hogwarts that I wrote to my Grandmother. She thought to keep them just in case I needed them, and as it happens I do need them. Bless her soul.

' _Dear Grandmother,_

 _I figured it would be best if I only wrote once a week. I don't want the other kids thinking I'm some sort of weakling or something. Besides I don't want Geronimo to fall right out of the sky exhausted delivering a letter ever day. (That is not why I named him that after all)._

 _My first week as a witch was an extraordinary one. I wish you could be here to see it all. All the dishes are gold, and a feast-sized meal appears on them in the blink of an eye. The only time I've ever seen them empty is when the Headmistress emptied them with her wand at the end of the Start of term feast. Speaking of the feast, I'm sure you know all about it. The sorting hat sang his song, it was about how you need all four houses to truly be great or something like that. After that came the sorting. I'm sure you would have been thrilled if I was sorted into the same house my father was, but I wasn't. I was sorted into Slytherin. I know the name sounds all sinister but really it's not._

 _I took me a whole night to come to terms with it, after all with how everyone talks about these houses it seems like your house decides your future. Sure some wizards in this house turned all dark, but really it was one, and he turned his friends to join him, what friend would truly abandon their friend? No good one and loyalty is something that Slytherins have pride in. They are loyal to their small group of friends. Despite the dark reputation, I love it. The green colour being everywhere, the secondary colour being silver, it accents the green nicely without being too pretentious or self-righteous. That and snakes are wicked clever (don't worry I know better than to ask for one for a pet, besides I would feel guilty that such a great creature has to live as my pet it deserves to be free.)_

 _The common room is located in the dungeon and we have a portrait that we have to tell a password to or we are refused entry. Because it's under ground it extends towards the dark lake and it always has this green glow, I'm not sure but I think there is a wall that turns into a window into the lake! How wizard is that? My dormitory is filled with first years just like me and the roof is lit up by these floating lanterns._

 _I'm sure you would love to know that I had made a few friends, first there's Ryder. He was the boy we saw on the train platform, turns out he was reading the same books I was and we shared a train compartment. He was sorted into Ravenclaw, he told me his house was all about the pursuit of knowledge and I have to admit I would have liked that house if I wasn't a Slytherin. Then comes the twins, Lotus and Iris, they were both sorted into Slytherin._

 _My classes were something else all together. They are hard, who knew there was so much everything else when it comes to magic? We haven't started working with wands or magic yet. Charms is all about the wand movements and understanding the language (to make spell casting easier I am told). Transfiguration is very complicated. This is the branch of magic where there is cold hard science. I think it is more science than magic. Potions is fun, you take these seemingly odd but ordinary collection of ingredients chop, slice, squish and even dice them in a specific fashion, add just the right amount in the right combination with stirring and jut enough heat and then magic happens and you have this fantastic magical potion! Defense against the Dark Arts is fascinating right now it's a lot of reading but it's more relevant learning. Herbology is all plants and dirt….Astronomy is at midnight and we look at stars…. And History of magic we have a ghost for a teacher! Oh and first years take flying lessons this week was all about commanding our brooms, I got mine up the first try._

 _I have been exploring the castle in between classes and homework and the castle is huge there are so many rooms and stair cases, that like to move. Some move only a little others jump floors, they like to get you all turned about. I have been working to see if there is a time table for when they move so far no luck. It seems random but they do have preferred landings, most have two that they alternate from (at either end only one end moves fortunately). The moving stair cases make it a bit harder to be on time but so far I have not been late._

 _I love you and miss you both, hope you are having a wonderful week. When you see Geronimo do give him a treat it will have been his first delivery and I hope to treat him well for it. I don't see him too often as he is in the Owlery with the other owls but I do try to visit._

 _With lots of Love,_

 _Siobhan'_

As you can clearly see I had attended all of my classes. It was evident early on that I easily excelled at Potions, Defense Against the Dark Arts and Transfiguration. I found Charms to be easy so it was hard to focus in class. Instead that class was used for gossip. History of magic, Herbology and Astronomy are my least favoured subjects and thank heavens for having a friend like Ryder. Flying class was a different matter. I loved flying.

Okay yes I may have left a few things out. I left out the fact that where ever I went there was always someone whispering hissing noises or whispers 'to watch your back, you wouldn't want to get cursed with your back turned.' Everyone thought that the Slytherin house was the evil house. All because a small group of witches and wizards went to school here once a long time ago went evil, doesn't mean every single person in this house will go evil. The house that always started the whispers was the Gryffindor house. The Ravenclaws sometimes not always followed in suit and the Hufflepuffs said nothing negative about anyone. They tried to find a common neutral ground for everyone.

I left out the fact that the one Gryffindor, Prince, that I had met on the train had made it his life's goal to make my life hell. He took it upon himself to try to trip me, or spell my book bag to dump all over the place. He liked to draw doodles of me going to prison for praying to snakes. But that's not the worst part of it all.

I was on my way back from the Owlery Saturday afternoon. I had just finished visiting Geronimo and had asked him to make his very first delivery. He was one very excited owl. I told Ryder I would meet him in the library to help him with his potions homework and to finish our Herbology homework. He and I made a very good team, the areas he struggled with I didn't and the areas I had problems with he was more than capable to help me. He even said there would be someone new to add to our group of friends we were all going to hang out by the lake Sunday.

'Where do you think you are going? They ought to lock people like you up, free to roam the castle it's as if they want us all to get cursed.' I heard the snarl of the one and only Prince standing behind me. I turned around annoyed I had dealt with his sneers for a week. All this about some wizards should not have been allowed to send their children here, how some families are best left to live the cursed lives of muggles and how there should be some sort of quality control to ensure those with magic deserve it. His idea of magic supremacy was simple no wizard or witch having a dark wizard or witch in the family deserved magic. Magic was reserved for those who would do good things with it.

'I was sending a letter to my Jesus loving Grandmother, or is that illegal too? Go bully someone else with your nonsense talk.' I hissed at him before turning and walking away. I was not a violent person I was a good person. He can be the worst person in the whole world that doesn't mean he deserves me to stoop so low as to curse him. That and I had only been learning magic for a week I didn't actually know any curses.

'Like I would be so daft as to believe that.' He scoffed at me. I shook my head in fury. I turned to walk away from him. The exact events are a little foggy. Either I got tripped, or pushed by hand, foot or spell, or someone stepped on my robes. But in the end I had help in my clumsiness. I ended up falling over my face and sliding head first into the four big hourglasses that kept track of each houses points.

Glass shattered shards of it ending up everywhere. The rubies, emeralds, diamonds and sapphires that were contained in each hour glass mixed spilling all over the Entrance Hall. Over the sound of the ringing in my ears and the sound of the stones crashing into each other and sliding across the great stony floor I heard the distinct sound of laughter.

I was buried in stones and glass. It took me a minute to dig myself out, causing even more of the priceless gems to slide across the floor making an even larger mess. I could see a small group of scarlet and gold clad students. They were all part of Prince's little gang of Gryffindors.

'What is going on here?' A stern voice belonging to non other than the Transfiguration professor, Professor Milori said. He caused all silence from the Gryffindors, great now they are going to weave some horrid story about me and I am going to get expelled my very first week here. Grandmother will disown me, they will break my wand and burn all of my books and notes. And for good measure they will use a memory charm on me so I forget everything from going to Hogwarts to Diagon Ally, and even meeting Bill and his mother. I will go back to being an ordinary normal plain old girl.

'I uhh tripped….' I stammered out slowly standing up and wincing as the stones fell off of my robes and spilled spreading my mess out even more. 'And uhh I fell into the hour glasses…' I said trying to step away from the broken glass, evidence of my trouble making, the feat was difficult as each step was fraught with slippery stones under my feet. It was only a matter of time before I fell again. 'And I am very sorry that I slipped and made such a big mess… I'll help clean up.' I volunteered. It only made sense that if I made a mess I had to help clean it.

'You simply slipped into the hourglasses? Causing all of this…' Professor Milori gestured to the mess I was standing in. If I were him I wouldn't believe me either. He was tall, not so tall that he was a tree but tall enough to be menacing when he looked down on you. He was muscular, not too muscular like a gorilla more like a very strong guy. He was an Auror he told us first day of classes. Transfiguration is a branch of magic that is widely used in that profession. He said he was asked by Professor McGonagall to take the position of professor, so he retired to mold the minds of tomorrow (I doubt there is a living soul that can tell her no).

'Yes…. I did….' I said avoiding looking in his eyes. I had a feeling that those stern golden eyes would see a lie on my lips a mile away. It felt better to lie to him if I wasn't looking straight at him. Although I had a feeling he knew I was lying he just didn't know why or what I was hiding. But I had this stinking feeling I was going to be in so much trouble.

'Prince is this what happened? She simply fell, and with the force of what looks like a hurricane fell into the hourglasses breaking all of them producing this…. Mess?' Milori asked Prince, he and his friends straightened up. Professor Milori is the Head of the Gryffindor house so if anyone could give them detention it would be him.

Under the gaze of Professor Milori they all looked uncomfortable. See that? That is what I was hiding I didn't want to be a snitch and give Prince and his gang even more ammunition to fuel their burning fires of hatred against me. They nodded to Professor Milori urgently.

'Milori, uhh this is a new one huh?' Professor Proudfoot said walking out from the corridor that leads to the dungeons. I turned and saw the head of my house and the sinking feeling of dread only intensified. Professor Proudfoot teaches Defense Against the Dark Arts and he too used to be an Auror. He was a little shorter than Professor Milori, but still he was not a man you wanted to cross. His eyes instead of holding a stern expression always had a playful one. Right now his blue eyes were curious.

'I would say so, apparently…. This student fell all on her own through all of the hourglasses.' Professor Milori said with the hint of disbelief in his voice. 'Prince and his friends have agreed with her story.' He added and Professor Proudfoot nodded and looked my mess over. He whistled he actually whistled.

'Not even Tonks' two left feet could do this on their own, lets go with the divide and conquer approach, if it comes out that there is something more than a simple innocent trip, then detentions are dispensed as needed?' Professor Proudfoot suggested and gently pulled me out of the mess. I was stunned to be honest. I didn't think they would think twice about expelling me. Look at what I did.

'Seems like a good plan. Think you can manage clean up? I after all do have more students to question individually.' Professor Milori asked glancing at the five students that were all part of what will become the Royal club. All people who follow Prince around like he's a king and they all act as if they were royalty because of their admiration of him.

'I'm sure I can handle clean up.' Professor Proudfoot said and with a small wave of his wand the mess started to clean itself. The stones had started to sort themselves out into groups, rubies, diamonds, sapphires and emeralds. Once sorted out the stones found themselves in mid air and the hourglasses formed around them and fixed themselves on the wall. The final touch was the correct arrangement of house points. By the looks of it I hadn't lost my house any points. Fantastic all of those points I had earned in potions class and in Defense Against the Dark Arts aren't all gone.

Professor Milori watched to make sure everything was all in order, or to gloat just in case Professor Proudfoot did indeed not have the capabilities to handle clean up. In that case he was sorely disappointed. He took the Royal club towards the single large set of stairs and out of sight. His office was nowhere near the first floor.

'Lets go chat in the privacy of my office, which is right around here.' Professor Proudfoot said and walked me to his office. His office was very close to the Slytherin common room. All heads of houses have offices close to their house. His was down one corridor past the corridor the common room was.

His office was what you would expect of an office, there was a mahogany desk littered with rolls and scraps of parchment, quills and bottles of ink, books both open and closed and a bowl of sweets. His chair was a big comfy sort and the chair sitting across from his was the less comfy sort. He had a fire place already lit besides his desk that let off this orangey glow. He had interesting trinkets on tables all lining the walls and a bookcase filled with books. The one wall I did see was littered with new paper clippings and photographs and certificates of some sort.

'Have a seat.' He said gesturing to the less comfortable chair. I sat down unsure of what else to do. I felt like being in a teachers office without having questions on the homework means I was in trouble. But his relaxed demeanor looked as if he was about to offer me a bowl of sweets. He sat down in his more comfortable chair and opened the lid on his sweets bowl, I peered inside to see it filled with chocolate. He offered the bowl to me and I was all to happy to relieve him of a several pieces. Who knew Wizards loved chocolate as much as the non-magical people do?

He waved his wand and a set or cups and saucers appeared with a matching teapot. He pointed his wand at the teapot and it filled with hot water. He pulled out a sugar bowl and a small pitcher of cream from his desk drawer along with a canister of tea leaves. He didn't ask me if I would like tea or a say in the type he chose (for the record he chose mint). He waited a few minutes after depositing a scoop of mint leaves in the tea pot before he filled both cups and placed one in front of me. That's when he sat back and stared at me with those inquiring eyes and made me want to spill my deepest darkest secrets to him.

'So, Flynn what happened with the hourglasses?' He asked looking right at me. I felt like I was under trial almost. I knew no matter what I said as long as it was the truth I wouldn't get in trouble and there is little to no chance that Professor Milori wont get the truth from Prince so Prince can't blame me for getting him in trouble. I really didn't want him to hate me all throughout the school year and forever.

'Well I did slip and crash into them… I was returning from the Owlery…. Prince he… uhh…. Said some choice things…. Something about locking people like me up…. And I don't know exactly what happened but I ended up face first in the hourglasses…I'm really lucky I didn't get all cut up…' I trailed off thinking I would have a face and two arms filled with cuts for my face plant into the hourglasses, but here I was without a scratch on me. While I struggled to say what happened Professor Proudfoot listened intently.

'Thank you for telling me, don't worry Milori will get him to squeal like a pig.' Professor Proudfoot said as I had started to brave the tea, it surprisingly was the perfect temperature. I keep forgetting this whole magic is real thing and that once learned I could do stuff like that too. Professor Proudfoot had written a note and with a flick of his wand the note folded up into a bird and took off.

'Magic…. I don't think I ever will get used to it.' I whispered watching the bird fly away. I heard Professor Proudfoot chuckle softly and I turned to see a smile on his face. Yes I get it this is very odd for a school professor and I know this is so Harry and Remus or Harry and Dumbledore all over again. But no no it's not Harry and Dumbledore I am not obsessed with him and have him on a pedestal and freak out when he ignores me.

'Your father used to say that, especially to your mother.' He said and took a sip of his tea to give me time to process the statement. 'Your father was an Auror like I was, and your mother worked with the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts department of the Ministry, I recognized your name and your mothers quick witted tongue in class.' He explained and I pulled out the small journal book I had grown accustomed to carrying about with me, it was the one Grandfather told me my father carried about. I used kept a pen with it and immediately I had started to write this down, along with ' _A spell to fold paper and cause it to fly?'_ I liked to keep these notes to myself spells I wanted to learn and such.

'I didn't know you knew them… Well to be honest I don't know much about them… ' I said feeling sad I didn't blame my Grandparents really I didn't, no one really talks about that Dark time so who can blame two non-magical people who weren't really in the know of what was going on. 'So actually I had a question about those extra classes The ones for the better integration into muggle life' I said changing the subject my parents were simply not someone I wished to speak about.

'Oh, That's a new program we are trying out. They are science classes and English and so on, the types of classes muggle children take. As an incentive the grades you get in these short classes will be converted to bonus marks that can be applied to your final grades of the subjects of your choosing.' He said perking up and pulling out the information booklet.

'Is there a limit as to how many I take?' I asked writing this all down. I had a feeling I would need all the help I could get in history class or Herbology or the star one.

'There is only one or two offered at a time, they are generally 2, 3 or 4 weeks in length, I don't see a limit that a student can take, so no there is no limit on the classes that you can take, but I will say you can only take the ones offered.' He explained I nodded and wrote this all down. I was going to take this to Ryder he was curious about them but he wasn't brave enough to bring these questions to Professor Flitwick, he didn't want him to think he was only in it for the marks.

'How will they be graded? Will they each have an exam or a very large final exam during the exam period?' I asked curious. These things matter how am I suppose to plan how many bonus marks I get if I don't have all of the facts?

'Each class will be graded as the instructor sees fit, some will have assignments others will have a single paper that will encompass the entire grade others will simply have an exam at the end. I suppose next you will want to know about the actual bonus marks. If you simply try the class but get a Dreadful grade you will get a single mark, if you attain a passing grade 2 marks, you get an E you get 3 marks and O you will be awarded 4 marks, that is per class.' He explained with amusement on his face.

'Thank you.' I said writing everything down as he said it. 'One last question how do I sign up for these classes?' I asked deciding in that moment I was going to do everything I could to do well at this school if it meant stay up all night having no time to have fun to study then I will (but at that time I seriously doubted I would ever be so dumb as to need to study every waking minute of every day).

'Through me. Each month I should be posting the available classes when they will be held and where on the bulletin board and you come find me and I register you in the class. For those not in Slytherin house they have to talk to their heads of house.' He explained I guess he caught on I wasn't only asking questions for me. I flipped through my book, I had written down the classes for September there are two, and they start a week apart and both last for 2 weeks, one is about birds and the other about fish.

'I would like to take both classes offered in September I have already checked to see if I can attend, and I can.' I said confidently. I had planned to get the highest grade in both so that will give me 8 marks to apply to any class at the end of the year. I will add as many marks to my bank as possible.

'Very well, I do hope you enjoy them.' He said and we finished our tea. And that will not be the end of the odd interactions I have with Professor Proudfoot. I had finished my tea and left his office. I stopped at my dormitory and picked up my book bag filled with my homework that was due next week.

Ryder was waiting for me and was not all that surprised that I was late, apparently a Hufflepuff Eric Black had witnessed the whole Prince thing and told Ryder that I would probably be late. Black filled me in on what Prince did, apparently he did a spell that pushed me into the hourglass, so that's how they broke. And apparently Professor Proudfoot fixed all of my cuts and scrapes when he fixed the hourglass. The magical feat won him some serious street cred with the first years but the older students all know that both Professor Milori and Professor Proudfoot have some serious magical power and it's a mystery as to why both seemed to suddenly quit being Aurors to teach.

Ryder was thrilled with all of the information I got about the extra classes and he agreed we would need every advantage we could and to do everything we could to succeed in this school. I think that is the only way we will survive this school.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Rattling chains

My first month simply flew by like magic. The classes didn't get any easier, but they did get more interesting and I learned that the work was manageable. I had learned several spells and the basics so even more spells are rapidly being added to my spell books every day. I even had several potions under my list of mastered. Things were going well, despite the chill in the air.

Ryder and I had the perfect study group working. We had gotten both of our head of houses to sign permission slips for us to have priority use of two different classrooms when they are not in use. There we practice charms, transfiguration quiz one another on theory, history and trivia that is likely to appear on an exam. I had even gotten us weekend permission to practice our potion brewing, this I had gotten mainly for Ryder he was less confident about his potion skills. We practiced different ways to slice, extract juices, squeezing and dicing to produce even better potions.

Our group had grown from the size it was on the train that faithful day. Myself and Ryder were the group leaders, then came the twins (naturally like they would let a genius like me study without them) and came the Eric Black the Hufflepuff. Eric occasionally brought by one of his Hufflepuff friends and the occasional Ravenclaw dropped by but most were scared of the reputation three Slytherins brought with them. Not a single Gryffindor was brave enough to venture forth to our study group.

The Gryffindors have gotten exceedingly well at spreading nasty rumours about the dark and dastardly witches and wizards that reside in Slytherin house. Most of the first year rumours were fueled by non other than Prince. Any information upon family trees was like candy to him. He found out several Slytherins had relatives who were known supporters of the dark lord and they received the worst of his nasty words. He liked to ask them if they had been to Azkaban recently and if they liked the cells. He loved to rub it in everyone's face that he was a Gryffindor and could do no wrong.

When I reminded the perfect boy that his perfect little house was nor perfect that Peter Pettigrew was a very well known supporter of The Dark Lord and was the one who betrayed the Potters that led to Harry Potter being orphaned at the age of one, he would go all red in the face. Everyone would get a good laugh but he was always one to get his revenge. He always found good ways to do so. Like the time my potion exploded in my face. I was covered in this viscous gross sludge. He dropped a whole bottle of Putrid Pus into my cauldron. It caused my potion to not only thicken and explode but once it started too cool it hardened. I had to spend the entire day in the hospital wing.

That wasn't as bad as him bullying a poor little Hufflepuff, and it wasn't just any Hufflepuff it was my cream puff friend Eric. He had found out that Eric had a cousin, who was sent to Azkaban. Eric's cousin turns out got arrested for the breeding of dragons (something that is very much illegal). That apparently doesn't matter to Prince, who stated clear as day that it doesn't matter what anyone did if they were in Azkaban they are a dark wizard and don't deserve to have magic or even know of the magical community. I could take all the harsh words Prince had to say, mind you I still had a secret that I wasn't hoping and praying that no one at this school ever found out, but you do not ever pick on the cream puff (that was the nickname we gave our Hufflepuff).

I studied for a week straight and mastered the jelly legs hex, and the bat boogey hex just in case things didn't go over too well. Then I waited until the perfect moment, that being him being alone and no teachers nearby. I found my moment and I told him to never pick on Eric again or the whole of Slytherin will hunt him down (I lied) and that I would find the basilisk on the chamber of secrets bring it back to life and sick it on him. He scoffed and that's when I hit him with the bat boogey hex right as Professori Milori walked by. I got detention. It was a very long detention. He believes in a working detention so I spent all day Sunday with him, I the forbidden forest hunting rabbits for his senior transfiguration classes. It was not as fun as it sounds trust me. Seeing as he didn't let me use magic. I had to catch rabbits by hand. Put them in cages by hand. And carry the cages by hand. It was the longest Detention I had ever heard of.

The worst part wasn't carrying the cages to the school or having one rabbit bite me. No it was the after my detention was served that it was terrible. Professor Proudfoot had decided to drop in on us on our way back to the castle. And he and professor Milori decided to chat about my behaviour, what I had done to earn the Wrath of Professor Milori and the detention from hell. They gossiped about me while I was pulling a wagon filled with rabbits and they didn't even have the decency to speak loud enough that I can hear. So instead I had to fill in the blanks. My version was terrible, Professor Proudfoot gave me a disappointed look and he was probably going to retract my permission for extra potions time and empty classroom usage.

While I was dealing with the rabbits I did notice a couple things about how these two professors interact. They were like brothers. There was no other way to account for the inside jokes, the banter the teasing each other even the exchange of gossip. And boy can those two gossip. They gossip about new spells, what students do or say in class that could be considered humorous, what they caught other professors doing, and so on. I wasn't sure how I felt having my favourite professor and the professor who enjoys asking me exceedingly difficult questions in class being so close. I wouldn't go so far as to say Milori hates me that would be ridiculously childish, but I say he does enjoy watching me suffer.

After my very excruciating detention I was determined to not have a repeat, especially with professor Milori. I wasn't the only one who had a horror story to share about him. He always got very creative when it comes to detentions he had one student (a sixth year) trim the whomping willow. Apparently trees over time collect dead branches, and to ensure their health those must be trimmed. I don't know how that has to do with Transfiguration but he did tell them they were wizards and had a wand. I really didn't want to end up having to battle a tree that fights back so I did my best to not get in trouble. The best way I could figure it out was to just avoid Prince and his gang.

The theory proved to be much harder to accomplish, you see after the whole bat boogey hex incident Prince had made it his life mission not only to make me rue the day I dared hex him, but also enjoyed telling me how I am a dark witch to the core. He still hasn't figured out my family tree I was smart and told no one the dark secret. That information in his grubby little fingers was like handing him a glass of poison and telling him 'here this will kill me, so don't go pouring it in my pumpkin juice.'

He was not above hexing me in the halls, I guess that's what happens when you stand up for your friends to the biggest git of all time. You have him thinking it's open season and you are the duck he has been longing to add to his collection of dead animals. He has mastered the spelling my bag to rip in the middle of the floor when I am running late for class causing the entire contents of my bag to spill all over the floor and me being late.

I had just finished with classes for the week yes it was Friday. I had several exams today, many would call that a curse but I prefer to see them as homework-less weekends. All I had to do was my pre readings before class Sunday night. It was one of those rare instances that I had spare time. I love it when I have spare time on the weekends. It gave me time to plan, plot and follow through on such plans and plots. I could explore the castle and its grounds, map out the movements of the stair cases, point out the chatty portraits from the grumpy ones and even start my very own map. I was going to enchant it of course to function similar to that of the Maurader's map. It was an object both Ryder and I dreamed of having although I think for very different reasons.

I had left my last class with my head up in the clouds thinking about which part of the castle we will explore today. I think Ryder has been itching to see if Fluffy is still in the castle. I have been scared to figure that out, maybe it was the thought of a giant three headed dog. That equates to three growling snarling heads each with a full set of sharp and large teeth. Never mind that he thinks he knows a way to handle the beast. Never mid that he thinks that the combination of our two brains is enough to figure out how to play music to put him to sleep and figure out a way to deal with it if the music thing was a lie. I didn't want to become dog food to be fought over by three different heads that each what to be chewing on my dead bleeding body. I enjoy living and death was the exact opposite of that.

It took one stray comment about how there should be a mandatory field trip to Azkaban so all the Slytherin students can pick out their future cells to alert me that Prince was in an extremely foul mood. I could only guess that he didn't see the blessing of having exams on Friday offered. He might have not done as well as I felt I did or maybe he was just being a git. I don't know but I made the decision to avoid him at all costs. I did not want detention this weekend (it would be a waste of a good weekend filled with free time that I had earned) and I really didn't want to spend an entire day at the mercy of Professor Milori and his evil funhouse.

I made the split second decision to avoid the Royals and their satanic leader and ran to the nearest girl's toilet. Thankfully Prince had yet to recruit any girls into his gang, otherwise I'm sure they would have followed me. I closed the door and leaned against it thankful that for once I had avoided him. I may be able to defend myself against him (the best defense is a good offense after all) but I didn't want to be the one who hexes every single person who wrongs me.

The girl's toiler was not at all to the standards of all the other girls toilets in the school. It was very very dirty, as if no one has bothered to clean it in ages. Besides that, the mirrors were cracked some were so smashed that no one could see their reflections. There was water slipped out all over the floor as if someone flooded the toilet and didn't bother to tell anyone.

'Have you come to make fun of me too?' A very cold voice said behind me. Her voice was more defensive than mean, it was the attitude of someone who got picked on a lot. I had to admit I knew the feeling. I looked to see the owner of the voice was a ghost. I had seen the ghosts floating around the most prevalent being Peeves. He was the only one in colour and he was the loudest. He was what I would call ostentatious. He liked to be noticed and his method was pranks.

The ghost on front of me was one I felt guilty for not knowing. She wasn't one of the house ghosts, and she definitely was too pearly white to be peeves. She was young for a ghost, she wore what looks like a Hogwarts uniform, glasses that looked a little too large for her face and her hair was pulled into two neat pig tails. She looked like she would have been pretty in the understated sort of way. The type of pretty that was natural and sweet. The sort of pretty that girls don't have to try for, the sort of pretty that juts happens.

'No… Why on earth would I make fun of you? I don't even know you, that sounds rude… Sorry. I was hiding from a group of very nasty boys….' I explained and it sounded even worse when I said it out loud. I was hiding in the girl's toilet to avoid a group of boys. I was hiding instead of standing up to them. I guess that reinforces the fact that I am not a Gryffindor.

'Everyone makes fun of moaning moping whining crying Myrtle.' She replied her voice becoming more squeaky and higher pitched. I reckon if she were alive she would have started crying again. I know I can't physically touch her, but I really wanted to give her a hug.

'I'm sorry… Myrtle… But I have no reason to make fun of you…. Please don't cry I would just feel awful if I made you cry.' I said not knowing what to do. If she were one of my friends I would have happily hugged them and rubbed their backs and be the shoulder they need to cry on. But I don't know how to comfort someone I can't touch. So this made everything awkward.

'So….Do you often hang out in the toilet?' I asked trying to make conversation hoping she doesn't start to cry again. It doesn't help that she has just made moaning noises around the toilet. It's really hard to talk to someone when they don't speak to you.

'This is my toilet.' She said in a defensive tone that made me rethink my tactics on how to talk to her. The way she say my toilet made me think that this was someplace meaningful for her, and for most ghosts that adds up to the place where they died. This is the ghost of someone who died at school and in the toilet no less. I instantly felt sorry for her.

'Oh well I am so sorry for trespassing on your space, it really is a very unique toilet….' I said looking around trying to find the right words to say. I didn't want her to start crying or anything because of me. I hate it when people cry around. It makes me uncomfortable. I just don't know what to do when they cry.

She didn't respond with words instead she let out a high pitched squeal and jumped into a toilet and added even more water to the puddle on the floor. My shoes got soaked in the process. Well isn't she the talkative one.

'I'll be going them… I'm sorry to have bothered you… er… enjoy your toilet.' I said and casually slipped out the girl's toilet trying to look like I wasn't running from her. But I was. I was scared of how uncomfortable she made me feel and I was scared to offend her to make her feel even worse. After all how good can someone feel haunting the toilet they died in? And by her personality she was probably made fun of a lot and spent a lot of time crying in the toilet.

It was lucky that my awkward ghostly encounter didn't attract the attention of Prince and his gang. The hall was empty and I made my clean get away to dinner. I guess I will have some explaining to do, but I'm sure Ryder would understand and that adds a really cool spot on our map and a really good hiding place. A haunted bathroom with a very sensitive ghost who lives in it.

I made my way down to the Great hall for dinner. Dinner was as big as a feast as ever and Ryder was waiting with the twins at the Slytherin table. He did this a lot, he even tried to get sorted into to Slytherin. He said all of his friends were in Slytherin and the Ravenclaw kids were nice but they were all…. Nerds. A term only the muggle born or muggle raised kids (such as he and I would understand) he even went so far as to say some of them are nerds. But Slytherin was filled with the smart cool kids. Part of me thinks he likes our dark reputation, if you are caught hanging around several of us, no one is brave enough to tease you.

Besides him and the twins a very brave Hufflepuff was sitting at our table. House seating was something that was enforced but not super strict. You could only sit at a different houses table, if there was room (the end was most favourable) and if you had at least one friend in this house. So that means not just any Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw could migrate over for protection only those that have earned it.

I sat down at my usual spot besides Ryder with the Hufflepuff on my other side. The twins sat with their older Brother. He was a year older and on the Quidditch team, he played seeker (his job was to catch the snitch ending the game and winning his team 150 points). He was actually a decent seeker. Quidditch practice as the season started right after Halloween. So when he sat with all we got all the Quidditch gossip, such as the first game would be the first Saturday of November. He gave us all the information we would need for the game (Gryffindor vs. Ravenclaw we all agreed to root for Ravenclaw).

Dinner talk was dominated by Quidditch talk. The highlight of the talk was that Gryffindor is having Quidditch tryouts. Apparently they lost most of their team (as they were all in 7th year) and they had to find a team and train a team in about a month. They had this habit of keeping previous teammates that is if one passed the tryouts for seeker they were seeker until they left school. Slytherin house on the other hand held tryouts every year, every position was open, previous team mates had to try out. Even the captain had to try out for their previous position. Apparently the morals of Quidditch had evolved from Gryffindor being the noble house to Slytherin being noble. Even with our mixed loyalty group, we all agreed Gryffindor has to lose the Quidditch cup this year.

'So what happened we were supposed to meet in the library and make our exploring plans.' Ryder asked me as the conversation turned to a heated discussion about two different Qudditch teams that neither of us had anything information about. It's not like we were up to date on the latest wizarding sports event. We weren't even up on the latest football game.

'I left class, and Prince was in a foul mood. I decided I really didn't want another detention, and Milori has his creepy funhouse of terrors of detention ideas….' I shuddered thinking back to rabbit hunting. ' So I played coward and hid in a girl's toilet until he left, turns out the toilet was a haunted one.' I explained feeling very guilty about making him wait in the library for me.

'You found a haunted toilet?' He asked then added 'and you didn't play coward you played smart, it's not cowardly to not want to hex him again.' He added making me smile. He knew I could easily produce one hell of a good bat boogey hex. The whole school knew all about my powerful hex. It made me feel proud but also ashamed that my fame came from hexing another student.

'Thanks, Myrtle's toilet… she's very…' I paused trying to search for the right word to describe her. I could have used any one of the adjectives she used but they didn't seem encompass the entire entity that she was. 'Melancholic.' I settled on a word and it seemed fitting.

'That's why they call her Moaning Myrtle, I hope she liked you there is endless potential for the person who befriends the owner of an entire haunted toilet.' Ryder said the words before I could even speak them. This is exactly why he and I are such good friends.

'I know… but she cries an awful lot and since I can't hug her…. I…wait she fancies pretty boys, I bet she will love if you bring her flowers, you befriend Myrtle and I will become best friends with Peeves. We need him to be on our side if we are ever to do anything worth remembering.' I told him loving the idea more and more. Peeves already liked me sort of. You see he would shout things like 'pig nose!' or 'Rainbow clown hair' and I would try my best at it until I mastered it. He squealed with glee when I did. If we are ever to learn ever inch of the castle more than the Marauders ever did, we will need the troublemaker to be on our side. We cant have him ratting on us every time we are out of bed after hours, or in a restricted corridor.

'What?' Ryder hissed at me. He clearly didn't like the idea of having a ghost fancy him. Well he has the advantage with her and I have the advantage with the fun ghost that likes to blow raspberries at Ryder because it made him jump the first time he did it. He used to drop water balloons on him but I told Peeves that I can't do the duck face if he keeps dropping water on me.

'Peeves likes me, he doesn't like you, and she doesn't like me much.' I explained to him and he thought it over. I could tell he was thinking about the treatment Peeves gave him when she wasn't around. And the strange way Peeves likes to float around her without dropping dung bombs, water balloons or making obnoxious noises at her. It was as if Peeves held her in high regards.

'Fine… so after dinner, we are on Mission Map and Mission Fluffy?' Ryder asked in a hushed tone giving up his plea to not have to learn a spell to make flowers for a ghost who spends her time moping moaning and flooding her toilet.

'Yes.' I said grudgingly even if I didn't want to seek out a veracious three-headed dog. I didn't but I will for him, because he has to get on the good side of Moaning Myrtle a task I really don't wish upon anyone. So I will potentially have to make music to safe my life, to make up for everything he will have to do on order to win the affections of a ghost who may at one point offer to share her toilet with him if he dies. Although for the record I never stated he would die, or that I hoped he would die to fulfill the dead girls wildest dreams, I merely said she would offer him a severely romantic gesture should such a horrid thing actually occur.

I feel a full disclosure is needed. I sound like a terrible elven year old. Telling my best friend to woo a ghost girl who has a track record or falling for living guys. And a history of offering to share her toilet if a guy she fancies happens to die at school. But he was planning on taking me to hunt down a deadly beast one I didn't care to find out if he still lived in the castle or not. Ryder does not die at school. He very much lives to graduate alongside me. We graduate together after seven very long years at Hogwarts. Okay? So Ryder does not die, I don't die we don't die.

After dinner we made our way to the third floor. Along the way we sketched the best we could the layout of the school, hallways, locations of statues suits of armour, doors to rooms, what those rooms are and so on. All in all I was postponing the inevitable of opening the door to the third floor. But we were running out of third floor to map.

'This is it…' He said nervous with his hand on the door. He had already unlocked it. I said I hadn't mastered that spell yet so he had better do it. I was worried that my desires to keep the door locked forever would prevent my spell from opening the door. Magic picks up on feelings, you have to really want it, or the spell will be temperamental, it wont be as strong as it should or it just wont work.

'Lets do this.' I said solemnly noting that his hands were as shaky as mine were. His were slick with sweat and he had to wipe his hands on his robes I followed in suit. I felt my stomach flip and flop, I was regretting he size of my dinner. Being hungry will not be an excuse id Filch finds out I hurled all over one of his floors. I least I can convince Peeves I did on purpose for the sole reason to vex Filch.

Slowly he opened the door, silence made him more confident and made me curious. Wasn't there supposed to be a loud growling and large snapping jaws trying to break through the door? I leaned in closer, so close I was sure he would feel my breathe on his shoulder. He opened the door wide and it was empty. Nothing on the walls, no claw marks. No large dog bed or chew toys. No large mysterious bones. And most of all no giant three headed dog. It was simply empty. I had to admit it was disappointing.

'Where is Fluffy?' I asked him disappointed that we would indeed not have to fend for our lives today with nothing more than a wooden flute he got from his trip to Spain. After the week of non-stop talk about the giant three headed dog I was disappointed that it wasn't there. He was so excited to see it, he spent ever free minute reading up on everything he could about three headed dogs.

'I guess I was right…. He was moved to Egypt probably after the whole Philosopher's stone thing..' He said sounding very sad. I wanted to punch him. He knew that there was a very big chance the giant three headed dog wouldn't be here? This whole time he could have dropped a hint that he didn't even think it would be here. This whole time he had be all scared out of my mind that I would have to fend off death because he didn't feel the need to tell me one small simple fact. He thought that the dog was in Egypt. He even had a timeline on when the dog was probably moved.

'What do you mean, that he was probably moved to Egypt?' I hissed at him closing the door. He had kept some very big tidbits of information ahead of him.

'I….. uhh guessed Fluffy would have been moved….. and I uhh really didn't want to be wrong… and you were freaked out about the potential in finding him… So… I uhh…. Thought it would be best if you didn't know… you know just in case I was wrong you would be prepared…' He stammered out blushing red. I will admit I did smack him, he deserved it. He made me worry and panic all for what? The rare instance that he could be wrong?

'You jerk…..' I said and wrote on the map ' _Fluffy is most likely in Egypt._ ' I will most likely keep that there written in the third floor corridor for reference, just in case someone else gets the brilliant notion to hunt down an extremely large three-headed dog one in which most spells to subdue the beast anger it even more. A beats that loves to chew on dragon hide and dragon bones.

My brief near death experience made me wonder how on Earth did Potter not die in his first year? Troll on Halloween, meet Fluffy twice. Troll on Halloween. Hunted a Troll on Halloween. Faced a troll on Halloween. I will not chase after a troll on Halloween should one venture into the castle, I don't care if Ryder is crying in the bathroom and he is alone in and I am the last person on Earth who can save him. The teachers will face the troll save Ryder's skin and I will have not followed in the idiots footsteps.

Halloween was fast approaching. Flying classes were nearing an end, due to the worsening weather, and that was the one class I had grown to love. Flying was not something I had thought I could be good at, but I was. It was strange being on that broom I felt like someone else. Our class would end on Halloween, a Saturday. Our professor had arranged for a mock Quidditch cups (one for each section of flying classes, one for the Gryffindor-Slytherin class and one for the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff class). It would take a while as each team needed 7 players, but she did have several Quidditch pitches set up on the fields.

Halloween morning I had decided to keep with the spirit of my favourite holiday and dress up more or less. That was until I was told wizards don't celebrate the way muggles do, in short there is no dressing up and no Trick or Treating. So instead of that I decided to sport my house colours, green and silver hair. I focused all breakfast but I made my finger nails match. I also wanted to do my skin but I just didn't have time.

The first year Gryffindor- Slytherin Quidditch cup, was something else. We were graded on how we use the flying techniques we were learned from our grip to how we mount the broom. There was a whole fleet of professors who all volunteered to help mark us all (there was a score sheet). We were divided into groups of 7, each house had so many teams that it was arranged that each house would duke it out until one team remains from each team. Then the final two teams would face each other the winning house will earn their house, 60 well earned house points. The winning team also wins a house scarf from the school consignment store (it sold school merchandise, supplies and so on).

The one good thing about this whole ordeal was that the other students (seniors and the other first years) were not allowed to come and watch. This was after all an exam and one does not watch one take an exam. That didn't help with the nervous feeling I had. I had doubts on being able to win. My team wasn't the best. The two beaters had terrible aim, the seeker was slow the keeper was cocky and the other two chases were morons.

The first game was the worst. It was the game that taught my team to listen to me. The chasers learned that there was more to Quidditch than relaying on the seeker and the keeper. The keeper learned he actually had to watch the game. The seeker learned to listen to the game not watch the game. The beaters learned which direction is preferred. And I learned there was more to Quidditch than just the quaffle. There was so much more.

Quidditch was complicated, so much more complicated than just throwing one ball through one of the three hoops. Oh no there was defense, using the bludgers to help corral the quaffle where you want it, or deter the wrong seeker from catching the snitch. There is the most opportune moment to catch the snitch, for either team. The first minute of the game would be the best you would think, but that almost never happens. The snitch ends the game, so you have to decide when you want to end the game, clearly if you have the better seeker the ball is in your court. And if they have the better chasers and keeper, you need that snitch caught ASAP. But of you don't have the best seeker you need a game plan for when that snitch is caught. You either let the other team catch it once you are 160 points leading the other team, or have your beaters on the seeker, so your seeker can catch the snitch. In short the game is about far more than one position it was about all seven players playing as one.

My team wasn't the best skill wise. But my team had something the others didn't. They had me, and my brain. I had been reading Quidditch strategies all month in preparation of watching Quidditch and also for my flying exam. In that first game I learned the strengths and weaknesses of my team and I had them play on them. Such as my keeper had a tendency to float to the right, my beaters had problem with aim and hated each so I had one who stayed at our end of the pitch and the other had to stay with the game. And my seeker… well we don't talk about that.

Despite our lacking in skills, and lacking in parents who trained us from infancy to play this game and we may have also lacked the confidence. We may have had me a small chaser a large seeker. But we still won every game we played. I wouldn't take losing as an option. We didn't always catch the snitch, but we won. I even took several bludgers to the head, shoulder and hip. But that didn't matter we won every game.

After the first game the others were blurs, the last game was the final game that stand out. One it was because the opposing team was red and all that came out of their mouthes was house-ist slurs. They were all into the bashing of Slytherin thinking that that was the way to get us off our game. I didn't let it get to me, and after stern words it didn't get to the rest of the team either (all smack talk was banned they were told one more stray insult and Slytherin will automatically win).

Gryffindor caught the snitch by we won, we had the better chasers. We had strategy and attack plans and we had a beater who really disliked the other team more than they disliked the other beater. We had an angry beater with a score to settle we had a keeper with a broken nose, and a seeker with a broken knee and we kept fighting. The snitch was caught as all hope was lost until we looked at the score and it had dawned on us that we won. We cheered and we shouted we won 60 house points for our house, the most points most firsts years attribute all year. And we won bragging rights and free scarves. Everything was going for us and we were on fire. All was good.

Then an arm clasped my shoulder from behind me and I looked and it as none other than Professor Proudfoot. And just like that the glowing warm feeling I was feeling inside was gone. I couldn't remember feeling this happy about something in a long time and the worst part of knowing I could feel that was having it dashed away all in one go.

'Come with me.' He said and walked me to the castle. It was a silent walk. I was trying to figure out what it was that I did to earn the calm stoic Professor Proudfoot and scared I was in trouble. Half way back to the castle I realized my arm was throbbing. I was ran the game over in my head trying to figure out when I had hurt my arm, I took a bludger to my arm and kept playing. Scored three more goals after that. Two more goals after my three and the game was over. Then we won and the whole being in trouble I guess the pain was just put on hold.

Once in the castle I had hoped we would stop by the hospital wing before we got to the yelling and giving me over to Professor Milori for detention. But this didn't happen. He took me to somewhere I don't know where. All I know there was a griffin. A griffin….. Crap he is taking me to the Headmistresses office! I am in so much trouble for doing…I don't even know what I did. How can I be in so much trouble I have to go to the Headmistresses office and I don't even know what I did.

Professor Proudfoot said a word and the Griffin left aside out of the way and bowed to us regally. Professor Proudfoot walked me in and up the spiral staircase. Up the staircase we went in silence, well we didn't talk but it wasn't completely silent. I heard the loud pounding of my heart in my ears. At this point I was sure I was going to be expelled for something and I was still wasn't sure what it is I did. It couldn't have been trying to find Fluffy that was over a month ago and I wouldn't be the only one. Ryder was there too.

'Professor McGonagall, I need you to make an exception of the school rule no first year may have their own broom. Flynn is a damned good flyer but aside from that she has the brain, everyone thinks Quiddich is all for jocks but you have to be smart she won. And the best Quidditch players have their own brooms, brooms are finicky they don't like many different riders. It's harder for them to learn the riders flight patterns. And a chaser needs to have an adaptable broom.' Professor Proudfoot said approaching the Headmistress without so much as a how do you do. That was the what she would have called nonsense. She was a very stern looking woman whom I sure did not accept nonsense. She scared me very much.

'Good afternoon to you to Professor Proudfoot, am I sure there is a reason you have brought a student to bleed in my office?' She said giving me the once over. I looked down and there was a blood stream traveling from my elbow to the ground. I guess my sore arm was bleeding too. I was too scared to really touch it and the thought of being expelled was far worse than the throbbing in my arm.

At this point Professor Proudfoot looked at me shocked as if it's my fault I'm bleeding and my arm hurts. No he was the silent brooding stoic one who was all come with me and took me to the scariest place in school. Like I was actually going to be brave come on who do you think I am some Gryffindor? Okay… lets hold off on the smack talk until I leave the former Gryffindor's office.

'Right well… we will strop by to see Poppy on our way out. She needs a broom. A good broom.' He said a little flustered now that she has interrupted his probably rehearsed speech with my bleeding. That's when it sunk in that I wasn't in any trouble at all. It appeared to be that Professor Proudfoot was going trying to get me a broom so I could play Quidditch on my house team.

'So I'm not in trouble? Good because I was trying to figure out what I did and I had no idea and that would not have been fair. Anyways sorry about the bleeding I didn't know I was…there was a bludger…. So about the broom rule, you let Potter have a broom in his first year, and it got smashed up in third year. You got him the top broom at the time so he could play on your house team and it took a while for them to actually win the Quidditch cup but it happened. So you have to let Professor Proudfoot let me have a broom otherwise you are favouring the Gryffindor house and that's not fair and I will tell my Grandmother and she will be so cross…. You don't want to meet her cross, she's scary like you sort of…' I trailed off and looked down when she gave me a stern look. I backed away scared she would just decide then and there that since I was comparing myself to Potter and that was enough of an offense to get kicked out. After all I was a Slytherin and they were seen as a scum, and Potter was the golden boy.

'She is in your house you do all of the work, she better be good. Gryffindor can take a healthy dose of humility.' Professor McGonagall said and looked at my arm sharply. 'First I suggest you take her straight to the hospital wing before she bleeds to death.' She said very coldly to Professor Proudfoot.

'I will speak to the captain. Train hard, practice hard. Don't make me look like an idiot. I cannot take one more year of Milori's gloating over the Quidditch trophy being in his office. If you beat Gryffindor you can keep the broom I will have the order placed tonight.' Professor Proudfoot said after he had me sitting on a bed in the hospital wing in between the snide comments of the school nurse. ' _Had to drag the poor dear all over the place before taking her to me, look at the swelling and blood loss, here dear drink this_ ' and similar comments were shot towards Professor Proudfoot.

'One last thing, don't tell anyone about you making the team. I want it to be a surprise. The first game is this Saturday, Gryffindor vs. Ravenclaw. I want everyone surprised when they see you playing.' He hissed at me in a hushed tone. I guess I have to keep a secret from Ryder, not. I will have Ryder sworn to secrecy. After his final comment the school nurse all but dragged him out of the hospital wing (this is a place of healing).

My arm was fixed in under a minute. She gave me a potion to ease the light headedness and a pepperup potion then with a wave of her wand my arm was fixed. The pain the blood everything was gone. I checked and there wasn't even a scar. The only evidence that I had broken my arm was the blood on my robes. There was no rip in my robes only blood stains. It looked like a Gryffindor threw up on my robes.

I wasn't released from the hospital wing until the Halloween feast was over halfway over. She was tutting under her breathe the entire time about professors not having proper priorities. ' _Putting a broom above a broken arm?_ ' She was in a foul mood and was extra strict with my healing process. She wanted to make sure the bones had set, and that I hadn't lost too much blood and that the break was healed fully. She wanted to make sure I wasn't sick and even fixed all of my bruises from the other games. She had food brought in for me, and made me promise to go straight to bed when I leave. My body has been through a very large ordeal and sleep will help ensure that I heal properly.

True to my word I walked leisurely and calmly to the Slytherin common room, careful not to exert myself. Most of my housemates were still at the feast so I was able to avoid the awkward question of what did Professor Proudfoot want. I took the quiet time before the common room floods with house mates, to come up with the best story. It was perfect because it was simple: he wanted to take me to the hospital wing because he was worried about my arm. I changed into my pajamas and found my winning scarf folded neatly at the foot of my bed. I smiled at it placed it in my trunk carefully (I had full intentions to wear it every chilly day) and slipped into bed. I made a promise and truth be told I was tired.


End file.
